^ 



GV 



UNJTCD STATE?. MATTONAL MUSEUM 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



BY 



STEWART CULIN, 

Director of the Museum of A rchaology and Pulteontologyy UniversUy of Pennsylvania, 



From the Report of the U. S. National Museum ror t.yj, pages 489-^7, 
with plates 1-12, and dgurcs 1-33. 



f* 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 





[INGTON: 

PRINTINO.OFFICS. 
1895. 



^ 




Class C^i\Zo^ _ 
Bonk ■ t<M> 



i 



SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 

UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



BY 



STEWART CULTN, 

Director of the Museum o/ A rchceology and Palaontology^ University 0/ Pennsylvania^ 



From the Report of the U. S. National Museum for 1893, pages 489-537, 
with plates 1-12, and figures 1-33. 



I'll) . 1 J 1 



?• 'j 'j 



WASITTNGTONt 

GOVERNMENT fRINllNG OFFICE. 
1895. 



s^-^rv 



i. 



o 



OCT 15 1904 
D.ofD« 



: c ' e e • • *c c • ' • 



■A 






\ 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



BY 



STEWART CUI.I:N^, 

Director of the Museum of Archceologij and Palceontology, 
University of Pennsylvdnia. 



489 



. CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



Bv Stewaht Culix. 



" The earth hath bubbles, as the water has, and these are of them." 

This paper,"* of Tvhicli a preliminary study was ])rinted in 1889,f is the 
first of a series on Chinese games, to be continued by similar accounts 
of playing cards and chess. It has been considerably extended, through 
recent stndies in connection especially with the collection gathered by 
the author in the Anthropological Bnildiiig in Chicago, and that in the 
National Museum. | 

The games described are chiefly those of the Chinese laborers in 
America, a limitation found as acceptable as it is necessary, since even 
among these people, who all came from a comparatively small area, there 
exist variations in the methods of gambling, as well as in the termi- 
nology of their games. The latter is made np largely of slang and col- 
loquial words and presents miiny difficulties. The gamblers are usually 
men of the most ignorant class, and those most familiar with the games 
are often the least able to furnish correct Chinese transcriptions of the 
terms employed in them, so that the task of interpretation would have 
been extremely difficult but for the assistance received from Chinese 
and Japanese scholars.§ 

* This paper has been prepared at the request of the authorities of the U. 8. National 
Museum, to illustrate a portion of its extensive collection of gauies. 

t Chinese Games with Dice. | By Stewart Culiu. — Read before The Oriental Club 
of Philadelphia. | March U, 1889. | Philadelphia. | 1889. 8-. pp. 1-21. 

tThis collection, though the author modestly refrains from mentioning the fact, 
owes much of its completeness to Mr. Culin's own generous contributions. 

G. Bkowx Goode. 

$ The Chinese words printed in italics are transliterated according to Dr. Williams' 

"Tonic Dictionary of the Chinese Language in the Canton Dialect," Canton, 1856. 

Dr. Hepburn's Japanese-English Dictionary has been folU)\ved for .Ia])ane8o,and tlie 

Korean words, in the absence of any-native standard of ortliograjjhy, and for the 

purpose of convenient reference, have been made to accord with that admirable work, 

the Dictionnaire Coreen-Francaia, Yokohama, 1880. 

491 



492 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 




Fig. 1. 



CHINESE DICE. 



GAMES WITH DICE. 

Chinese dice* are sniall cubes of bone marked on each side with 
incised spots from 1 to G in number, (fig. 1) which are arranged in the 
same manner as the si)ots on modern European dice, as well as those of 
Greece and Komeof classical antiquity;! the "six" and "one," "five" 
and "two," and "four" and '^three" being on opposite sides. 
The "four" and "one" spots on Chinese dice are painted red, and the 

"six," "five," "three," 
and "two" are painted 
black. The " one" is 
always much larger and 
more deeply incised than 
the other spots, jwssibly 
to compensate for its 
opposite, the " six." 

The origin of the cus- 
tom of painting the 
"fours" red is accounted for, according to the Wa Kan san sal dzu e^X 
by the following story: 

An emperor of the Ming dynasty (A. D. 1368-1643) played at sugorokn with his 
queen. He was almost defeated by her, but had one way of winning through the 
dice turning ''fours." He cried and threw the dice, and they came as he desired, 
whereupon lie was exceedingly glad, and ordered that the ''fours" thereafter be 
painted red, in remembrance of his winniag. * 

A similar story was related to me as a common tradition among the 
Cantonese, by an intelligent Chinese, who gave the emperor's name as 
Ld Ling Wong,^ who reigned under the title of Chung Tsung (A. D. 

*^The common name for dice among the Cantonese is sink tsz', composed of shik, 
"colors," and tsz\ "seed," " dice." 

In Medhurst's English and Chinese Dictionary, Shanghai, 1847, three other names 
for dice are given : t 'au tsz' composed of f au, written with a character compounded 
of the radicals, kwat, "bone," and shii, "a weapon," "to strike," and the auxiliary 
tsz' ; sheung luk, "double sixes," from what is regarded as the highest throw with 2 
dice, and luk cli'ik, literally "six carnation." The last name may be considered as 
a compound of the terms for the most important throws: "six" and carnation or 
red; the "four," to which, as will be seen, an especial significance is attached, as 
well as the "one," the lowest throw with a die, being painted red. In Japanese dice 
are called sai, a word written with a Chinese character, ts'oi, "variegated," "lucky." 

t About the only dotted cubical dice which depart from this arrangement are those 
of the ancient Etruscans, which are regarded as having the "one" and the "three," 
"two" and "four," and "five" and "six" opposite, a system which does not appear, 
according to the writer's observation, to have been constant. 

t "Japanese Chinese Three Powers' (Heaven, Earth, Man) picture collection." 
Osaka, 1714; vol. 17, fol. 4. 

$ Whence a vulgar name for dice among the Cantonese, hot lb, composed of hot, 
"to call out loud," and lb, for Lb Ling Wong. 

Modern Indian dice are usually marked with l)lack and red spots. In the Mahab- 
harata (iv, 1, 2.5) reference is made to "dice, dotted black and red." (Prof. E. W. 
Hopkins, J. A. O. S., vol. 13, p. 123.) 



Report op National Museum, 1893.— Culin. 



Plate I. 







A. 



X. 






IHA 



• • 



i^iL 



X 






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Chinese Dice. 



^^td^ 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 493 

684:, 701-710). 31r. Herbert A. Giles* tells me that this story is men- 
tioned by a Chinese author, but I am inclined to regard the account as 
fanciful, and think that it is probable that the color of the ''fours" 
was derived, with the dice themselves, from India. 

Several sizes of dice are used by the Chinese, varying from a cube 
of two-tenths to one of seven-tenths of an inch. Different sizes are 
emi)loyed in different games, according to custom. (^ 

Dice are usually thrown by hand into a porcelain bowl, the players 
throwing around in turn from right to left, and accompanying their 
eff'orts with cries of Joi! '"come !" 

The Chinese laborers in the United States play several games with 
dice, but they are not a popular mode of gambling, and are generally 
neglected for fan fan, and Chinese dominoes. 

sz' 'ng luk. 

The best known of these games is called sz^ ^ng lnl\ " four, five, six,'^ 
commonly contracted to sing Ink, and is x^layed with 3 dice of the 
largest size. The throws in it in the order of their rank are: ''Three 
alike from three "sixes" down, called walA " Four, five, six," called 
sing luh or chiinfd.X Two alike, the odd die countingfrom " six" down 
to ace, the last throw being called yat fat, " ace negative." One, 
two, three, called mo lung, "dancing dragon," or she tsai, "little 
snake." 

The first player is determined, on throwing around, to be the one 
who throws the highest number of red spots. The other players lay 
their wagers, usually in sums divisible by 3, before them. The first player 
throws until he makes one of the above mentioned casts. If he throws 
sing luk ("four, five, six"); 3 alike; or 2 alike, "six" high, each of the 
players at once pay him the full amount of their stakes; but if he 
throws md lung or yat fat, he pays them the full amount of their 
stakes. If he throws 2 alike, "five," "four," "three," or "two" high, 
the next player on his left throws. If the latter makes a higher 
cast, the first player must pay him, but if a lower cast, he must pay 
the first player. The amounts thus paid are usually proportionate 
to the difference between the throws with the odd die. If it is 4 
or 3, the full amount; if 2, two-thirds, or if 1, one-third of the stakes 
must be paid. 

The third player throws in the same way, and the game is continued 
until the first player is out-thrown. 

"" Chinese dice are the exact counterpart of our own except that the ace and four 
are colored red; the ace because the combination of black and \vhite would be 
unlucky and the ''four" because this number once turned up in response to the call 
of an Emperor of the T'an<i^ dynasty, who particularly wanted a "four" to win him 
the 2)artie. (Strange stories from a Chinese Studio, Vol. ii, p. 145.) 

t TVai means ''to inclose," and is a term that is also employed in Chinese games of 
chess and cards. 

t Literally, "strung flowers." 



494 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

. KON MIN YEUNG. 

Kon min yeimg, " pursuing sheep," is played with 6 dice of the larg- 
est size. It is a game played for small stakes, usually for something 
to eat, and is seldom resorted to by professional gamblers. 

In it the player throws until he gets 3 alike, when the sum of the 
spots on the other dice is counted. 

The throws in the order of their rank are: Six ^' sixes," called tdi 
min yeung, ''large sheep." Six " fives," "fours," '^threes," "twos," or 
"ones," called min yeung A:!^^//, " rams." Three alike and "six, six, 
five," called 7»m ^eim^ 71^', "ewes." Three alike and the other throws 
than the above. These are designated by the number representing the 
sum of the throws with the 3 odd dice. 

'The throws, tdi min yeung and min yeung Icung^ take all the stakes. 
If min yeung nd, or any other cast of 3 alike, is made, the next player 
throws until he gets 3 alike, when he pays if his throw is lower, or is 
paid if it is higher, as in sing lulc. 

The throw of 3 "fours" is called tcong p^ang fui^ concerning the 
origin of which name the following story is related: 

A boy and girl were betrotlied by their parents. The girl's father died, and the 
family having been reduced to poverty, her brother 8old the girl to become a i^rosti- 
tute. This she resented, and anxious to find her betrothed, whose face she well 
remembered, she caused it to be advertised that she would yield herself to the man 
who could throw 3 ^^ fours" with the dice. Many, attracted hy her beauty, tried and 
failed, until her husband, Wong p'ang-fiii, who had obtained the rank of kdi iin, or 
senior wrangler at the provincial examination, presented himself. For him she sub- 
stituted loaded dice, with which he threw 3 ''fours," whereupon she disclosed her- 
self, and they were happily united. 

chIk t'in KAU. 

Chdh Vin IcaUy "throwing heaven and nine," is played with 2 dice. In 
this game the 21 throws that can be made with 2 dice receive different 
names, and are divided into two series, or suits, called m<Jt?j, " civil," 
and mo, "military." 

The 11 man throws, in the order of their rank, are figured on the 
right of Plate i. They are : 

'^ Double six," called t'in, "heaven." 

"Double one," called ti, "earth." 

" Double four," called ?/aw, "man." 

*' One, three " called wo, * " harmony." 

*' Double five," called miii, "plum (flower)." t 

*Thi8 throw is called by some n{/o, a "goose," a name, like those of the throws 
that follow it in this series, evidently derived from a fancied resemblance of the 
spots on the dice. 

tThe 5 spot is also called by the name of nmme or 'i plum (flower)," in Japan. In 
Korea the same name, mai-hoa, ''plum flower," is given to the sequence " five, one;" 
"five, two;" "five, three;" "five, four;" "five, five;" "five, six" in the game of 
Ho-Jqyai, with dominoes. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



495 



"Double three/' called ch'eung sdm, " long threes." 
"Double two," called _pa/i tang, ''bench." 
"Fire, six," called fu t'au, " tiger's head." 
"Four, six," called liung t'au shap, "red head ten." 
"One, six," called Vo keiik ts'at, " long leg seven." 
" One, five," called hung ch'ui luk, "red mallet six." 

The 10 mo throws in the order of their rank are figured on the left 
of Plate I. They are: 

" Five, four," and " six, three," called Jcau, " nines." 

" Five, three," and " six, two," called jKif, "eights." 

"Five, two," and "four, three," called ts'at, " sevens." 

" Four, two," called lul:, " six." 

"Three, two," and "four, one," called 'ng, " fives." 

"One, two," called sdm, "three," or sdm kai, "three final." 

The first player determined, the other players lay their wagers on 
the table. The first player then throws and his cast determines the 
suit, whether man or md, for that round. Ko other throws count and 



1 ^ I 

• • 

• • • •! • • 

• • • • • • 



4 



Fig. 2. 

PlT CHA BOARD: CHINA. 

the players throw again, if necessary, until they make a cast of the 
suit led. If the first player throws the highest pair of either series, 
that is the ^' double six " of the man, or one of the '^ nines " of the md, 
each player at once pays him, but if he leads the lowest of either suit, 
that is, the ''five, one,^' or '' one, two," he pays them the amount of 
their stakes. 

If he throws any other pair than the highest or lowest of either suit 
the second player throws, and is paid his stakes, if he throws higher, 
by the first player, or pays him if he throws lower. The game is con- 
tinued until the first player is outthrown, when he is succeeded by the 
second player, and the others lay their wagers as before. 

PAT chI. 

Pat elid, '' grasping eight," is played with 8 dice, preferably of the 
smallest size. In this game the banker is provided with a diagram 
(fig. 2) numbered or dotted, like the G faces of a die, upon which the 



496 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 




players place their stakes. It bears the legend j^at fimg, '' unlike,'^ 
which expresses the desire of the banker as to the manner in which 
the dice shall fall. A player throws 8 dice. If at least 3 fall like the 
number bet on, the gamekeeper pays him 8 times, or if 6 or more are 
like the number bet on, IG times the amount of his 
stakes. In any other event, the player loses. A 
similarly marked tablet is used in j)laying with the 
ch^eme, or teetotum (fig. 3). This implement is made 
with 6 dotted sides. The players lay their stakes 
upon the numbers on the tablet, and wia 4 times 
the amount of their stakes if the one played on turns 
uppermost, or lose, if another number comes up. 
The ch^e me is said to have its sides decorated 
sometimes with pictures of fish and animals instead 
of numbers or spots, and the diagram, which is 
called the ch'^e me p\u, or the "tablet for the 
teetotum," is then similarly inscribed (fig. 3).* 

CHONa tJN CH'AU. 

Chong iln cWau is a game played with tallies, eh''au, the highest of 
which is called chong un, the name given the Optimus at the examina- 
tions for the degree of Hanlin, whence I have styled it '^The Game of 
the Chief of the Literati." (pi. 3.) Two or more persons may play, using 
6 dice and 63 bamboo tallies. The latter receive the following names: 

First. One piece about 6 inches in length, called chong iln, the first 
of the Hanlin doctors. This counts as 32. 

Second. Two shorter pieces called pong ngdn, second of the Hanlin, 
f dm fit, third of the Hanlin. Each count as 16. 

Third. Four shorter pieces called 2ii iln, the First of the tsun sz\ or 
literary graduates of the third degree. Each count as 8. 

Fourth. Eight shorter pieces called tsun zs\ literary graduates of the 
third degree. Each count as 4. 



Fig. 3. 

CHINESE TEETOTUM. 

(From specimen in the 
mupeum of the University 
oi Pennsylvania. ) 



*A similar game from Manila, Philippine Islands, in the United States National 
Museum (Plate 2), consists of a cardboard with 6 equal divisions, with numbers, 
represented by disks of colored paper, from 1 to 6; a hexagon-shaped top with num- 
bers from 1 to 6, and a saucer in which to spin it. It is described by the collector, 
Hon. Alex. R. Webb, United States Consul, under the name of prinola, as a popular 
game in the market places with the native women, " Bets are placed on the spots on 
the board, the top is spun rapidly in the saucer, and the winners are paid double the 
amount of their bets. Only one number can win, of course the one corresponding 
to that which turns up when the top stops turning, and the chances are therefore 
quite largely in favor of the dealer." The name is evidently the Portuguese pir'niola, 
but the game is probably of Chinese or Indian origin. In India a 6-sided teetotum, 
chukree, identical with the Chinese, is used, and is turned like a top on a wooden oj 
china plate. ''The stakes are placed on a board with 6 partitions, and the game is 
decided on the settling of the die with a particular number uppermost. The play 
of this game is allowed only during the Diwali festival, when gambling is sanc- 
tioned as a religious observance." (Ms. catalogue of Indian games and toys pro- 
cured for the Chicago exhibition. Provincial Museum, Lucknow, India.) 



Report of National Museum, 1893. — Culin. 



Plate 2. 




< •= 



^1 

o 



Report of National Museum, 1893. — Culm. 



Plate 3. 




Tallies for "Chong un chau." 
fat. No. i:>3ti()5. U. S. N. :\I. KwangtuiiK. China. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 497 

Fifth. Sixteen slioiter pieces called Ml yan, graduates of the second 
degree. Each connt as 2. 

Sixth. Thirty-tvro shorter pieces called sau ts^oi, graduates of the 
first degree. Each count as 1. 

The first, second, and third classes bear rude pictures and names, 
but the others are usually distinguished only by their size. 

Two or more persons can play. The players throw in turn from right 
to left, and after throwing each draws the tallies he is entitled to 
according to the appended table. If the tally called for by a throw 
has been drawn, its value may be made up from the remaining ones; 
but the winner of the chong iln must surrender it without compensati(m 
if another player makes a higher throw than that by which he won it. 
The one who counts highest becomes the winner. 

The game is said to be played by women and children, and is not 
played b}" the Chinese laborers in the eastern United States, although 
they are generally acquainted with it. 

A set of implements for this game from Johore in the collection of 
His Highness the Sultan at the Columbian Exposition was similar 
to that above described, and was evidently of Chinese workmanship. 
It was catalogued under the name chong ican cMam {chong Un ch'au), 
the tallies being called buah-buah hertulis. 

The throws in chong iin cWau^ in the order of their rank, are: 

6 "fours." 6 ''fives." 6 ''twos." 

6 "sixes." 6 "threes." 6 "ones." 

These throws are called ts^un shik, and take all the tallies: 

5 "fours" and 1 "six," or 1 "five," or 1 "three," or 1 "two," or 1 "one." 
5 "sixes" and 1 "four," or 1 "five," or 1 "three," or 1 "two," or 1 "one." 
5 "fives" and 1 "four," or 1 "six," or 1 "three," or 1 "two," or 1 "one." 
5 "threes" and 1 "four," or 1 "six," or 1 "five," or 1 "two," or 1 "one." 
5 "twos" and 1 "four," or 1 "six," or 1 "five," or 1 "three," or 1 "one." 
5 "ones" and 1 "four," or 1 "six," or 1 "five," or 1 "three," or 1 "two." 
4 "fours" and 1 "three" and 1 "one." 
4 "fours" and 1 "twos." 
4 "sixes" and 1 "four" and 1 "two." 
4 "sixes" and 1 "five" and 1 "one." 
4 "sixes" and 2 "threes." 
4 " fives " and 1 " four " and 1 " one." 
4 "fives" and 1 "three" and 1 "two." 
4 "threes" and 1" two "and 1 "one." 
4 "twos" and 2 "ones." 
4 "fours" and 2 "sixes." 
4 "fours" and 1 "six" and 1 "five." 
4 "fours" and 2 "fives." 

4 'Mours" and 1 "six" and 1 "three," or 1 "six" and 1 "two." 
4 "fours" and 1 "five" and 1 "three," or 1 "six" and 1 '-two." 
4 " fours " and 1 " five" and 1 " two," or 1 " five " and 1 '' one." 
4 "fours" and 2 "threes," or 1 "three" and 1 "two." 
' 4 "fours" and 1 "two" and 1 "one," or 2 "ones." 

Each of the above throws counts as thirty-two, and takes the chong iin. 
n. Mis. 184, pt. 2 32 



498 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



2 "fours," 2 ''lives." and 2 '' sixes." 

2 " ones," 2 " twos," and 2 " threes." 

3 ''lours" aud 3 "sixes," or "fives," or " threes," or '' twos," or " ones." 
3 "sixes" and 3 "fives," or "threes," or "twos," or "ones." 

3 "fives" and 3 "threes," or "twos," or "ones." 
3 "threes" and 3 "twos" or "ones." 
A sequence from "one " to "six." 

Each count as 16, and takes either the pong ngdn or thhn ja. Three 
"fours" with any combination except those mentioned count as 8, and 
take one of the ni iln. Four '^ sixes," 4 " fives," 4 " threes," 4 '^ twos,'' 
or 4 " ones," with any combination of 2 dice except those ah^eady men- 
tioned count as 4, and take one of the tsim azK Two '^ fours" count as 
2 and take one of the Ml yan. One '' four" counts as 1, and takes one 
of the sail Woi. 



QO0Q0QOQ 



009000 








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QOflflOQ 



I'ig. 4. 
CHINESE BACKGAMMON. 

(From De Ludis Orientalibus. 1694. 



The Chinese game similar to backgammon, which that accompUshed 
scholar, Dr. Thomas Hyde, described in his work on Oriental games 
under the name of Chinensium Nerdiludium ( The Nerd Game of the 
Chinese) * is not played by the Chinese laborers in America, nor do 
any I have met appear to be acquainted with it (fig. 4.) 

According to Dr. Hyde, it is called by Chinese goan Kt, which he 
translates as erectus Indus, or ereetoruni ludus, but which might be 
rendered as " the bottle game " or "• bottle chess" goan {isini), meaning 
a vase or bottle, and Ki (kH) being a generic name for games played 
with men as chess. 

This game is i)layed with dice and small upright i>illars, from which the name is 
derived. The board is divided into eight equal parts by transverse lines, and the 
pieces, which are from 2 to 3 inches high and number 16 on each side, are arranged 
upon it when the playing commences, as seen in the figure. 

The pieces are moved line by line, according to the throws with the dice, from the 
places on the left to the eighth place on the right, and from thence ascending'to the 



*De Ludis Orientalibus. Oxford, 1694, p. 65. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 499 

opposite side aud back to the starting place, the player who first gets all his pieces 
there wiuDing the game. 

Two dice are thrown, and the pieces are moved to the places which the niimher of 
the throws directs. One may move whatever piece or pieces one chooses, according 
to the number, either pieces which have been moved before or those which have not 
yet been moved. If, instead of upright pieces, one plays with small flat discs, which 
is also permitted, they may be placed side by side or piled on top of each other, as 
seems most convenient. 

A throw of 2 '^ ones " causes a piece to be set aside and delivered up as lost, or, if 
the game is played for money, it loses the player the tenth part of his stakes. Who- 
ever throws ''twos " or " threes " begins moving to the second or third lines, and so 
on. If doublets are thrown, one may move to the place corresponding to the half 
number of such doublets; and this maybe done by moving 1 piece once to such 
half number, or 2 pieces at the same time to the place corresponding with such whole 
number, for in this case either 1 or 2 pieces together may be moved. If " live " and 
"six," which make 11, are thrown, one may move 1 piece to the fifth place and 
another to the eleventh, or else move 2 pieces at the same time to the tenth line 
or place, and then 1 of them to the next line, which is the eleventh. And thus 
with resi^ect to other throws : If single (as '' two " and '' four ''), for the single num- 
bers move as many places, but if joined (as ''five"' and "six"), then otherwise, as 
already stated. 

The game of backgammon, played upon a board of 24 stations simi- 
lar to the boards in common use in Spain at the present day, exists 
along the entire eastern coast of Asia, from Korea to the Malay Penin- 
sula. 

SSANG-RYOUK. 

In Korea the game of backgammon is known as ssang-ryouk (Chinese 
sheung lul), double sixes. It is played with wooden pins or men 
(fig. 5), called mal (Chinese md), '' horses," upon a hollowed ho'drd^ssang- 
ryoul'-hpan* according to the throws with two dice. 

The throws receive the following names: 

1-1, syo-syo (Chinese siu siu), " smallest." 

1-2, ijoui-hko (Chinese shii pi), "rat nose."' 

1-3, syo sam (Chinese siu sdm), " small and three." 

1-4, pdik sd (Chinese j>a A; sz'), " white aud four." 

1-5, pdik i (Chinese pdk 'ng), '^ white and five." 

1-6, pdik ryouk {Chinese pdk luk), "white and six." 

2-2, tjoun-a (Chinese tsun a), "superior two." 

* Hpan, the word used for " board " in ssang-ryouk, as well as Korean chess and other 
Korean games, is written with the Chinese character meaning "an order," "rank," 
which the Cantonese call kuk. The men are about 3^ inches in height. Fifteen are 
employed on each side, one set being painted red and the other left the natural color 
of the wood. They are usually made of boxwood, but soun^ softer wood is employed 
for the cheaper sets. 

Dice are called in Korean (/j/ou-sd-a (Chinese c/m shd, " vermillion," df), and are 
identical in every respect with those of China. The only other Korean games with 
dice than ssaug-ryoak with which I am acciuaiuted an^ as follows: One which my 
informant tells me has no particularnaiiie, but whichmightbe cnUediJyoK-sa-d-nol-ki 
Three or four boys sit around, and ouv ])uts a ])eauut or piiio nut on the floor and the 
die is thrown, the nut going to the one throwing the highest. The other, consists 
in the substitution of a cubical die for the four staves used in the prevailing Korean 
game of nyout-nol-ki. 



500 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



2-3, a sum (Chinese a sdm), *'two and three." 
2-4, a sd (Chinese d sz'), ''two and four." 
2-5, loan-a (Chinese liin d), " soverei<j,ii two." 
2-6, a ryouk (Chinese d luk), "two and six." 
3-3, tjyang-sam (Chinese ch'eung sdm), " long- three." 
3-4, som sd (Chinese sdm s^'), "three and four." 
3-5, sam o (Chinese sdm ^iig), " three and five." 
3-6, sam rijoulc (Chinese sdm luk), " three and six." 
4-4, ijonn-liong (Chinese tsiui linng), " superior red." 
4-5, sa (Chinese sz^ 'ng), "four and five." 
4-6, sd ryouk (Chinese sz' luk), "four and six." 
5-5, fjoun-o (Chinese tsun ^ng), "superior five." 
5-6, ryouk (Chinese ^ug luk), "five and six." 
6-6, tjoun-ryoul (Cliinese tsun luk) "superior six." 





Fig. 5. 

KOREAN PIECE FOR 
BACKGAIVIMON. 



Fig. (3. 
SSANG- RYOUK (BACKGAMMON) BOARD: KOREA. 



A diagram of the board, set as at the coinmencemeiit of the game, 
is shown in fig. 6. 

The board has mortised sides, wliich extend about 2 inches above the 
surface. The divisions on either side, called pat (Chinese f m, '' fields"), 
are simply outlined in black. The larger ones in the iniddle are not 
counted in moving, and are used to throw the dice in. The first player 
is determined by the highest throw with 1 die. The pieces are moved 
around according to the throws, as in the English game of backgam- 
mon; but it is customary to move 2 pieces when doublets are thrown, 
and doublets do not entitle the i)layer to another throw, nor to any 
additional count than if the dice were dissimilar. 

A player may take an opponent's i)iece, which must be again entered, 
as in the English game. This is called tjap-ta, ''to catch." When a 
player gets all his men around into his home place he bears them off 
according to his subsequent throws. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 501 

SAKA. 

In Siani the game of backgaminon is known as sala^ and is played 
upon a board, represented in tig. 7, with 2 dice.* Sixteen discs of ivory, 




FiV. 7. 
SAKA (l!ACKGAMM(1.\) BOARD: SIAM. 

like draftsmen, are used on each side, one set being white and the 
other, red. The small compartments on either side of the board are 




Fig. s. 

KRABOK: CYLINDEK FROiM WHICH DICE ARE THROWN. 
(Siamese BackgRminon.) 

said to be intended for cowries (^/«), which are used as counters. The 

])ieces are entered, according to the throws, in the right-hand side of 

the board opposite the player, and are 

moved around, as in our game, to the 

side directly opposite, where they are 

thrown off. A player does not take 

his opponent's pieces. The dice are not 

thrown directly with the hand, but are 

loaded into a tube [Jirabol') of ivory, 

about 3 inches in length (tig. 8), called 

I'rabok sa]{a, and shot obliquely through 

another cylinder of ivory, 2i inches high 

(fig. 9), called by the same name, placed 

upon the board. These implements 

correspond with the Roman fritiUus 

or dicebox, and the pi/rrfus, the latter 

being defined as "a little wooden tower 

on the side of a gaming board, hollow, 

and having steps inside, through wliich the dice were thrown n[>{)n 

the board, t 




Fiff. 0. 

CYLINDER INTO WHICH DUE ARE 
THROWN. 

,?i.>me.-c Uackeaniiiinii. ) 



* Dice are called in Siamese loJ: hnl. 'Ilu y are identical with those of ( hina. 
t Andrews's Latin-English Lexicon. 



502 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 
TABAL. 



A backgammon board from Joliore, exhibited by His Highness the 
Sultan in the collection of games at the Columbian Exposition under 
the name of tahal^ is represented in fig. 10. It is played with 2 dice, 
dadu, those exhibited being marked in black and red, like those of 




Fig. 10. 

TABAL (BACKGAMMON) BOAKD : JOHORE, MALAY PENINSULA. 

(From specimen in the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania.) 

China. The name of the game, tahal, is doubtless from the Portuguese 
tabola or Spanish tahla, and dadu from the Portuguese or Spanish dado, 
*'adie." 

SUGOROKU. 

The game described by Dr. Hyde agrees in some respects with the 
Japanese game of sugoroku, as illustrated in native encyclopedias. 
In fig. 11, reproduced from the Kum mo dzu e tais ex* the board is 




^Tt^T 



'^ 



Fig. 11. 

SUGOROKU BOARD: JAPAN. 

represented as being divided into 12 parts by lougitudinal lines, which 
are broken in the middle by an open space similar to the ho Mi, or 
"dividing river," of the Chinese chessboard. According to the same 
work the 12 compartments, called in Japanese me, or ^'eyes," symbolize 
the 12 months, and the black and white stones, with which the game is 
played, day and night. 

* ''Very Complete Collectiou of Pictures to Teach the Uueulighteued." Kiyoto, 
1789, vol. 4, part 8, iol. 5. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 503 

The moves are made according to the throws of the dice, the name 
being derived from that of the highest throw, sugoroku (Chinese, sheung 
luJc), or '"double sixes."* 

JSugorol'u am^esLYS to be of i>Teat antiquity in Japan. The Wa Kan 
san s«i states that it is recorded in the Japanese Annals that sugoroku 
was forbidden in the time of Jito Teuiul (A. D. (387-092), and that it is 
probable that it was played in Japan before the game of ^ot was brought 
to that country. The same encyclopedia, in the careful manner usual 
in such works, makes a number of citations from Chinese authors with 
reference to the origin of the game. It says it is recorded in the Suh 
sz' ch'it that Ts'ao Chih§ of Wei invented sugoroku, and used 2 dice 
for it, but at the end of the Tang dynasty (A. D. 618-913), the number 
of dice was increased to 6. 

It is written in the Wu tsah tsii that sugoroku is a game that was 
originally played in Hu (Japanese, Ko), the country of the Tartars. It 
relates that the King of Hu had a brother who was put to death for a 
crime. While in prison he made the game of sugoroku and sent it to 
his father, writing with it a few words in order to make known how men 
are oppressed by others when they are single and weak. 

The jS'gan lui yau states that sugoroku came Irom the T'ien Chuh, 
'^ndia.'' 

The name of sugoroku is applied at the present day in Japan to 
various games played upon boards or diagrams, in which the moves 
are made by throwing dice.|| Of these there are many kinds, among 



* Sugoroku is also called rokusai, as will be seen from the names appended to fig. 11. 

t Chess, by -v^hich the game of 360 men, half black and half ^yhite, called by the 
ChiDese wai A't is meant. 

tl am unable to identify either this or the two following works quoted in the 
Wa Ean san sai. 

^Ts'ao Chih (A. D. 192-232) was the third son of the great usurper, Tsnu Ts'au, 
who overthrew the Han dynasty. He was distinguished by precocious talent and 
poetical genius, and devoted himself wholly to literary diversions. (The Chinese 
Reader's Manual, No. 759.) 

II The name is also applied to at least one simple dice game in which no board or 
diagram is used. Mr. Kajiwara informs me that in the Province of Aomori, a com- 
mon game with 2 dice is called ichi-san sugaroku; so called from the name of the 
highest throw, ichi san, '^one, three." 

Japanese dice at the present day usually have their 6 faces marked with black 
dots. Those used by gamblers are said to be larger than the kind employed in 
popular amusements. The dice games are said to vary in ditfercnt i>arts of the 
Empire. Japanese sailors in New York City play a game with 2 dice called eho han, 
"even and odd." They throw 2 dice under a cup. Tlie even throws are called cho 
and the o<ld han. The players, two or more in number, bet on the even or odd by 
calling out and laying their wagers before them while the cup remains inverted over 
the dice. They use foreign playing cards cut lengthwise in 8tri])saml tied in bundles 
of 10 as counters, instead of money; a custom that they say has its origin in the use 
of the narrow Japanese playing cards, or bamboo tallies at home for this purpose. 
The same game, under tlie same name, called by the Chinese cliiumi }inn, is known 
to the Cantonese laborers in the I'uited Jitates as a common game in China. 




504 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

whicli the most popular is called do chiUy or ^' traveling" sugoroku. It 
is played upon a large sheet of paper, on which are represented the 
various stopping places upon a journey; as, for example, the 53 post 
stations between Tokio and Kiyoto, and resembles the games of '' snake" 

and ''steeplechase," familiar to 
English and American children.* 
Such games are much played by 
the Japanese at the season of the 
the New Year, when new ones are 
usually published. In 1889, Japa- 
nese newspapers reported that two 
new games oi sugoroku found much 
tavor in Tokio. 

The same general name would 

JAPANESE CHILDREN PLATING SUGOROKU. *= 

be given by the Jaj)anese to the 
following Chinese game, which I have occasionally seen played by 
the clerks in Chinese stores in our cities. 

SHINO KUN T'O. 

Shing Mn fo, the "table of the promotion of the officials," is the 
celebrated game which is best known through Dr. Hyde's account as 
"the game of the promotion of Mandarins." t 

It is plaj^ed by two or more persons upon a large paper diagram, on 
which are i)rinted the titles of the different officials and dignitaries of 
the Chinese Government. The movements are made by throwing dice, 
and the players, whose positions upon the diagram are indicated by 
notched or colored splints, are advanced or set back, according to 
their throws.}: 

The following story was related to me concerning the invention of 
the game: 

* A paper diagram for a game of suyoroka is entitled, according to tlie characters 
on the sheet, Hokkaido shin do iclii ran sugoroku. or ''A glance at the Hokkaido new 
road sugoroku.'' This game was published in 1873 on the occasion of the opening of 
a new road throngli the southern part of the island of Yesso, froiii Hakodate to Sap- 
poro, the capital. 

The diagram consists of an impression in colors, 32^ by 20 inches, and is divided 
into 38 parts, exclusive of the goal and starting place. These contain pictures of 
the scenery at the diffierent stations on the road, each division having a tablet beside 
it on which the name of the jilace is written, with the distance to the next stopping 
place. The game is played with 1 die, the players throwing in turn, and advanc- 
ing from the lower right-hand corner to the goal at the center. Each spot of the 
throw counts as one station on the diagram. If a player's move leaves him upon a 
division having the character tomare, " stop over," he loses his next throw. When 
a plaj^er near the goal makes a higher throw than is just necessary to take him to 
the central space, he is set back ; if he has an excess of 1, to the fifth place from the 
goal; 2, to the fourth ])lace, and so on. 

tDeLudis Orientalibus, p. 70. 

t A similar but much simpler game, with tlie titles of Japanese instead of Chinese 
officials, is played in .Japan under the name of kKwanroku. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



505 



'^^ 



^ 

c' 

V 



'■*■' ;*• -: '.' .• (-> 
•: ^ "* "^^ ** - 

' * fi ? ;*■ V 



Co 



(JO 



The Emperor Kienlung (A. D. 1736-1796) was in the habit of walking at nightfall 
among the houses occu2iied by the candidates for the degree of Hanlin, who came 
up to Peking for the triennial examination; and hearing, night after night, the song 
of the dice issuing from one of them, he sum- 
moned the offender before him to expham his 
conduct. In excuse, fearing punishment, he 
told the Emperor that he had constructed a 
chart, on which were written the names of all 
the official positions in the Government, and that 
he and his friends threw dice, and according to 
their throws traversed the board, and were thus 
impressed with a knowledge of the various 
ranks and steps leading to official advancement. 
The Emperor commanded him to bring the chart 
for his inspection. That night the unfortunate 
graduate, whose excuse was a fiction created at 
the moment, sat until daybreak, pencil in hand, 
and made a chart according to his story, which 
he carried to the Emperor. That august prince 
professed to be much pleased with the diligence 
of the scholar who improved his mind, even 
while amusing himself, and dismissed him with 
many commendations. 

Tbis familiar sounding story can not 
be accepted without question, esi)ecially 
since it will be seen that Dr. Hyde i>ub- 
lished his account many years before the 
period mentioned ; but my informant, a 
clerk in a Chinese shop in Philadelphia, 
may not have stated the date correctly. 

The paper charts for the game may be 
l)urchased at the Chinese stores in New 
York and San Francisco. The names of 
the different offices are arranged upon 
tliem in rectangular divisions, alongside 
of each of which is a tablet with the 
name of the board or class under which 
those within it are included. They 
ascend from the lowest to the highest 
in successive stages, arranged in order 
around the chart from right to left, and 
iron) the outer division, which is devoted 
to provincial officials, to the innermost, 
which has the titles of the members of 
the metropolitan administration. The 
center is occupied with rules for play- 
ing. Four dice are thrown in turn by each i)laycr, instead of 0, as 
fojmeiiy recorded by Dr. Ilyde. Entrance is obtained by making a 
cast- either of 4 alike, by which the ])layer is at once advanced to an 
''hereditary rank;" of ''three, four, five, six,"' called chUhiftr, of .3 alike 









!:-5a 






.'fw ;fe 



•A. 






^^ 



Fig. Ki. 

FIRST PLACES FOR ENTERING IN THE CAME 
OF "PROMOTION OF MANDARINS." 

(From De Ludia OrientRlibus, 1691. ) 



506 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

or 2 alike. All of these throws, in descending order, enable the i)layer 
to enter one of the positions from which advancement may be obtained. 
Subsequent j^romotion depends upon the throws, doublets enabling the 
X)layer to move once; 3 alike, twice; and 4 alike, 3 times. "Double fours" 
count highest, "double sixes" next, and so on down to "ones," through 
which the'player is set back. The appropriate move for each throw is 
indicated 'in small characters beneath each of the titles on the chart. 

A curious contrast is presented between the little sheet reproduced 
by Dr. Hyde (fig. 13), upon which only the principal officials of the 
Ming dynasty are represented, and that now current, whereon may be 
seen the innumerable ramifications of the Chinese "civil service" under 
the present Tartar domination. 

The charts such as I have seen used in the United States are printed 
in Canton, and bear an impression about 23 inches square. They 
are divided into 63 compartments, exclusive of the central one and 
the place for entering at the lower right-hand corner. The latter 
contains the names of 13 different starting places from yan shang, or 
" honorary licentiate," down to fung shang, or " student," between 
which are included the positions of fin man shang, " astrologer," and 
i shang, " physician." These are entered at the commencement of the 
game by the throws of " three, four, five, six," 3 " fours," 3 " sixes," 3 
" fives," 3 "threes," 3 " twos," and 3 "ones;" and then in the same 
manner double "fours," and so on down to double "ones." 

The 63 compartments, representing as many classes of officials or 
degrees of rank, comprise 397 separate titles, of which the highest, and 
the highest goal of the game, is that of manfd tin tdi hole sz\ or " grand 
secretary." This, however, under favorable conditions, can only be 
readied by a player who starts from a favorable point, advancement 
in the game being regulated by rules similar to those which actually 
regulate promotion under the Government. Thus a player whose 
fortune it is to enter as a physician or astrologer can only obtain pro- 
motion in the line of his service, and must be content with a minor 
goal, as he is ineligible to the high civil office of "grand secretary." 

The dice are thrown into a bowl placed in the center of the sheet, 
the players throwing in turn, and each continuing to throw until he 
has made a cast of doublets or higher. It is noticeable that "fours," 
as in Dr. Hyde's account, constitute the highest throw. A pair of 
"fours," according to the rules, is to be reckoned as tali, " virtue," and 
leads to a higher place than those of other numbers. "Sixes" are 
next highest, and are to be reckoned as ts'o?*, " genius; " and in the 
same manner, in descending degree, "fives" are to be reckoned as 
Icung, "skill;" "threes" as leung, "forethought;" "twos" as yau, 
" tractability ; " and "ones," chong, "stupidity." 

The game is much complicated by being i)layed for money or counters, 
which is necessary under the rules. By this means advancement may 
be purchased, degradation compounded for, and the winner of a high 
position rewarded. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



507 



The main poiut of differeDce iu the game as it exists to-day and as 
described by Dr. Hyde is in the number of dice employed. The 
enlarged form of the diagram is of minor importance, as he himself 
says tliat the names of the officials written on the tablet are many or 
few, according to the pleasure of the players. 

The game of sliing Ixun fo and the Japanese game of many stations, 
described under the name of siigorol-u, I regard as having been derived 
Irom the ancient Tai'tar game played with staves, which exists at the 




Fig. U. 

P6 TSZ' (CHINESE). 
(From spetinjen in the Museum of the University of reunsylvania. ) 

present day in Korea under the name of nyont-nol-lil. As to the back- 
gammon game, which I consider to be a development of the same game, 
and which I have described as existing in Korea, China, Japan, Siam, 
and the Malay Peninsula, I am uncertain whether it is indigenous, has 
come over from India, or been acfpiired from the Portuguese or Si)au- 
iards in the fifteenth or sixteenth century. 

ro Tsz\ 

ThOi pd tsz\ or covered die, is not, properly, a die at all. It consists 
of a small wooden cube (tig. l-Ifl), which is placed in a square recep- 
tacle in the top of a brass prism (iig. 14: c), over which a brass rover 



508 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

(fig. 14^) fits very closely. A specimen exhibited by His Highness, the 
Sultan of Johore in the section of games at the Columbian Exposition 
consisted of a wooden cube about one-half an inch square, having one- 
half of each face painted red and one-half white. The prism in which 
the cube fitted was slightly convex on the bottom, and, when placed 
upon a smooth surface, could be twirled rapidly. The game is played 
by placing the box containing the pb in the center of a square crossed 
by diagonal lines, which is drawn upon a mat. One of the four 
divisions of the square is painted red. The players lay their bets upon 
the other divisions, and the box is spun rapidly by the gamekeeper, 
who repeats the oi^eration until it comes to rest squarely with the cor- 
ners corresponding with the intersecting Tines. The cover is then lifted, 
and those who have staked opposite the red side of the die win. The 
banker wins when the red side comes oppovsite the side of the square 
painted red.* There is said to be a current notion, amounting to a 
superstition among the Chinese in Johore, that if a player stops the 
box as it is spinning the luck will surely go against him. 

KONG POH. 

Another si)ecimen in the Sultan's collection, called at Johore, Icong 
poh (Chinese ftmg j?d), '^ current treasure," furnishes an explanation ot 
the name po. It consists of a wooden die (fig. 15 «), with a face 1| 
inches square, and three-fourths inch thick, which fits into a brass box 
with a broad base (fig. 15 b). A woodsn cover (fig. 15 c) fits over the 
box. This die is not spun, but is concealed in a bag which accompanies 
it, and there adjusted by the gamekeeper. The face of the wooden 
die is carved with the characters fung pd (fig. 15 «), on one side in the 
ordinary, and on the reverse in seal characters, the character fiing 
being painted red, and po white. The inscription fung po, '^curfent 
treasure," occurs on the face of all modern Chinese coins (fig. 15 ^Z), and 
the common name of the game is evidently derived from the character 
po, which occurs on this block. 

GAMES ^A^ITH DOMINOES. t 

Chinese dominoes, commonly called kwat i?Vn*,| ''bone tablets," con- 
sist of 32 rectangular pieces of wood, bone, or ivory, similar to those 
used in Europe and America (i^l. 4). 

They differ, in the absence of the " blank" in the Chinese series (fig. 

" The Manners and Customs of tlie Chinese of the Straits Settleraeuta, Singapore, 
1879, p. 63. The Chinese laborers in the United States are generally unfamiliar 
with the game. 

t Read in part before The Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Philadelphia, 
November 4, 1886. 

tThis is the common name among the Cantonese. Medhurst's English and Chinese 
Dictionary, Shanghai, 1847, gives in addition two other names — n(jdp\ii, '4vory tab- 
lets," and Urn isz^ p^ui, " dotted tablets." 



Report of National Museum, 1893. —Culm. 



Plate 4. 




nMnH § ji § 




9Q I , J 3 


j-..>l ^ :# 


i 



Chinese Dominoes with counters, in tin box. 

Cat. No. 1G85J08, U. S. N. iM. KwanKtiuiK, China. 



Report of National Museurr., 1893. -Culin. 



Plate 5. 



3^-?- 



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Method of pairing Chinese Dominoes 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



509 








Fig. 15. 



KONG POH: JOHORE, MALAY PICMNSILA. 
(From specimen in the Museum of thp rniver«ity of PennsyWania. ) 



M 



510 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



IG), wliicn eommences with "double one" instead of '' double blank," 
and contains 21 different pieces instead of 28 as in the European 
game (fig. 17). Eleven of the 21 pieces are duplicated, making 32 
pieces in a set. 
The '' one" and " four" marks and the alternate '^threes," which com- 



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Fig. 16. 

CHINESE GAME OF DOMINOES. 



K^ 



prise the " sixes," are usually painted red, while the 
painted black or white, depending upon the material 
The dominoes in common use in the Province of 
among the Chinese in the United States are made 



other marks are 
of the dominoes. 
Kwangtung and 
of Chinese ebony 



• • c • • •••••«••••• • • • •••• • • .••••« 

• •••«• •■• 

> • » » » • » « » » • • _• •__• 

• ••• • ••• • •••• ••• ••••••• 



Fig. 17. 

EUROPEAN GAME OF DOMINOES. 



and are about 2j inches long, seven-eighths of an inch in width, and 
three-eighths of an inch in thickness, with incised spots, which are 
painted red and white. The ends of each piece are usually ornamented 
with a single incised red spot, while the backs are sometimes uniformly 
marked with three spots, one red between two white, arranged diagon- 
ally across (fig. 18). 




Fig. 18. 

CHINESE DOMINOES: PliOVINCE OF KWANGTUNG AND UiVlTED STATES. 

The following Chinese games are those of the Chinese laborers in the 
United States, among whom they are the commonest gambling impie-. 
ments. They call each piece by name, and in certain games pair themi 
according to the arrangements shown in plate 5. The 11 pieces thai 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 511 

are duplicated are paired with their doubles, aud form a series or 
suite, to wbicli they give the name of man, ^' civil,'' while the reuiain- 
ing 10 pieces are paired with each other, in accordance with the sum 
of their spots, and from a suite called wo, "military." 
The man pieces, in the order of their rank, are: 

6-6, called fin, "■ heaven.'' 

1-1, called ti, '• earth. •' 

4-4, called yan, ''man." 

1-3, called wo, '' harmouv.'' 

5-5, called miii, ''plum" (flower). 

3-3, called ch'eung sdni, " long thiee.*' 

2-2, called pan tang, "bench." 

5-6, called /m fau, ''tiger's head." 

4-6, called hung fau sliap, " red lu-ad ten." 

1-6, called kb ke'uk ts'at, "long leg seven." 

1-5, called hung chUii Ink, " red mallet six." 

The mo pieces are : 

2-4 and 1-2, called chi isiin, "supreme." 
6-3 and 4-5, called tsclj) kau, " heterogeneous nines." 
6-2 and 5-3, called tsdp pat, " heterogeneous eights." 
4-3 and 5-2. called tsdj) ts'at, "heterogeneous sevens." 
1-4 aud 2-3, called tsdp 'ng' hik "heterogeneous sixes." 

Both pieces in all the pairs are of equal value and rank in their suits 




Fig. 19. 

STACK OF DOMINOES AT OPENING OF GAMES. 

in the order given, except those which compose the pair called chi tsiin, 
which together form the highest pau\ but separately are the lowest of 
the mo series. 

The arrangement of the dominoes called sheung tung, or '^ stack," at 
the opeuing of games, is shown in fig. 19. 

Tif it. 

A simple game called tiu ii, " to angle," is played by 2 or 3 persons 
with 2 sets of dominoes. The pieces are well mixed and piled face 
down, side by side, in a stack 4 high. Four i)iles of 4 each ar^ now 
drawn from one end of the stack and placed face up on the table. 
When 2 play, both i)layers draw 3 piles (12 dominoes), or if 3 play, 2 
piles (8 dominoes) from the same end of the stack. The players then 
examine their pieces, and the first player endeavors to mate one of 
his pieces with one having the same number of spots among those 



512 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

turned up ou the table. If successful, he places the mated i^air, face 
up, before him. In either case he draws the bottom i)iece of the pile 
at the end of the stack from which the last piles were drawn and 
endeavors to mate it with one of those on the table. If successful, he 
takes the pair, but if not, he places the piece drawn among those on the 
table. The second player then tries to mate one of his pieces, and 
also draws one from the stack, and the game is continued in this man- 
ner until the stack is exhausted. A pair of double "sixes" in a 
plaj^er's hand is at once laid out. If a player holds a piece in his hand, 
identical with 2 pieces on the table, and the fourth piece of the same 
kind has not been i^layed, he may, at his turn, pile the 3 i)ieces that 
are alike one upon the other, with the uppermost face up^ at the oi)po- 
site end of the stack to that drawn from, and the player who first lays 
out the fourth piece may take the 3 pieces. The 2 pieces composing 
the cM tsihi mate with each other, and form an exception in this game 
to the rule by which all pieces having the same number of spots mate 
with each other without reference to their belonging either to the man 
or wo series. When the last domino is drawn, the players examine 
those they have taken. The pieces on which the spots number 8 or 
more are called idi il, "• large fish," and count 2 points for each sx^ot. 
The pieces below 8 are called sai il, '' small fish," and count 1 point for 
each red spot. If this latter sum is between 2 decades, the highest 
decade is counted. The player counting the highest becomes the win- 
ner, and is paid by each of the players for each point he has in excess. 

TS'UNG SHAP. 

Tshmg shaj), " to dispute for tens," is played by 2 persons w itli 1 set 
of dominoes. The pieces are piled face down, side by side, in a stack 
4 pieces high, which the players divide between them, each player 
taking 8 of the 16 piles. The first player draws the top piece from the 
end pile towards the right of his pile, and lays it face up on the table. 
The second player, in turn, draws a piece and lays it face up alongside 
of the x>iece i)layed by the first player. The i^layers continue to draw 
and place the pieces on the table in this manner either on the right or left 
of the row thus formed. If a player lays down a piece which is a dupli- 
cate of one of the pieces at either end of the row, he takes both pieces, 
called tiiij a " pair," and they count 10 for each spot on them at the end 
of the game. Or, if a i^layer lays down a piece on which the spots, 
added to those on 2 pieces at one end of the row, or on the pieces at 
each end, form a sum that is a multiple of 10, the j^layer takes the 3 
pieces, and they count 1 for each spot on them at the end of the game. 
If there are but 2 pieces on the table, and a player takes them, he piles 
them upon each other to mark the play, called td}) tiy literally "to tread 
on earth," i. e. a " sweep," which counts 40. The winner draws and lays 
out another piece. Should he fail to take up a winning combination of 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 513 

2 or 3 pieces, his opponent may take it, and follow by laying out a piece 
and continuing the game. The game proceeds until one of tlie players 
has laid out all of his pieces, when the one who counts highest 
wins. 

k'ap tIi shap. 

Kim tcli shap, ^' to grasp many tens;" Ch^i tdl shap, '^to grasp many 
tens ; " K^ap tdi shap, " to complete many tens ; " is played by any number 
of persons from 2 to 20 and upward, and is the favorite game with 
dominoes in the Chinese gambling houses in the United States. In 
many of these houses a large table covered with matting to deaden 
the sound is kept apart for this game. As there played, many sets of 
dominoes are used which are well mixed by the players and piled faces 
aown, side by side, in piles 5 pieces high in a long stack upon the table. 
The croupier, or one of the players, shakes 4 dice under a cup, and 
counts around to the right, commencing with the player on his right, 
up to the number thrown. The one at whom he stops becomes the first 
player. The top piece on the third pile from one end of the stack, with 
each alternate piece on the top up to the number of persons playing, 
less'one, is now removed and placed in a pile at the other end of the 
stack. The first player takes 2 piles at the end and gets 10 pieces; the 
second player on his right takes the 2 next piles and gets 9 pieces, and 
so on, each player except the first getting 9 pieces. 

In this game each piece in a set of dominoes may be mated with a 
du])licate piece to form a pair called ngdn, " eye." The ngdu or eyes 
thus formed b}^ the pieces on the left (pi. 6) are called iln ngdn or 
"weak eyes," while those formed by the pieces on the right are called 
ngdng ngdn, or '' strong eyes." The object of the game is to get 10 
pieces in each of which 2 are the same- and form either an iin or ngdng 
ngdn, and the others form 4 j^airs, in each of which the sum of the 
spots is 10 or a multiple of 10, whence the name of the game. The 
piece 2-4 is only counted as 3 in making up tens. 

The players examine their pieces, and the first player if he has not 
drawn a winning hand, discards a piece which he throws face up on 
the table. The next player to the right may take this piece to complete 
a winning hand, or in exchange for a piece from his hand, which he 
places face \x\) on the table. He also draws a piece from the bottom of 
the exposed pile of the stack. If it does not complete a winning hand 
he may either throw it face up on the table, or keep it and discard a 
piece from his hand. The third player may now take one of the ])ieces 
on the table and draw one from the bottom of the exposed pile. The 
game proceeds in this way until one of the players gets 10 pieces, of 
which 2 form a ngdn, and the others pairs on which the sum of the 
spots is 10 or a multiple of 10 and wins the game. 

In gambling houses the stakes are placed in a box on the table at 
H. Mis. 184, pt. 2 .'^3 



514 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

the comiDencemeiit of each game, the players all contributing the same 
ainomit. Five per cent is at once taken from the box for the gambling 
house, and the remainder goes to the successful playei-. 

k'ap shap. 

K^ap shap, '^ to complete tens;" K^im shap^ " to grasp tens;" Shap 
tsa% " little tens." K'ap shap corresponds with the preceding game 
and is the name given to it when ijlayed by 2 persons. One set of 
dominoes are used and the pieces are arranged in a stack 4 high. The 
first player takes 8 and the second 7 pieces. The object of the game 
is to get 8 pieces, 2 of which form a ngdn, or i^air, and the others pairs 
on which the sum of the spots is 10 or a multiple of 10. In this game, 
as in Jc^ap fdi shap, a winning hand is required to contain 1 ngdn, or 
''eye." Slight variations from the manner here described occur in 
playing these games. The first player is frequently determined by 
drawing a domino and counting around, instead of by throwing dice. 

nau t'in kau. 

Nan fin Jcau, literally "turning heavens and nines," from the names of 
the highest pieces of the 2 suits, is i)layed by 2 persons. One set of 
dominoes are used, which are piled face down in a stack 4 high. The 
first player draws the top domino from the end of the stack toward his 
right, and the second player the one beneath it. The second player 
must draw a higher domino of the same suit, either man or mo, or the 
first player takes both pieces and places them on the table before him, 
with the face of the winning piece exj^osed on top. The winner con 
tinues drawing first until the other player draws a higher piece, when 
the latter takes both pieces and has the lead. The game is continued 
in this way until the stack is exhausted. Each of the players then 
counts the red spots on the exposed faces of the dominoes before him 
and the one having the highest total becomes the winner, and is paid 
for each red sx)ot he has in excess by the loser. 

Ti. t'in kau. 

Td fin Icau, "to play neavens and nines," called, like the preceding- 
game from the names of the highest pieces of the two suits, is the best 
and most highly developed of the Chinese games with dominoes. It is 
played by 4 persons with 1 set of dominoes. The 32 pieces are arranged 
face down in a stack 4 high to form 8 piles of 4 pieces each. One 
of the players throws 2 dice, aiid counts around to determine who shall 
be the first player. He is called tsd chong, " builder of the barn," or 
chong Jed, and usually places some object on the table before him to 
indicate his position. A disk of wood inscribed with the character 
chong frequently accompanies sets of dominoes for this purpose. The 
first player takes 2 piles of dominoes. If the dice fall near one end of 
the stack of dominoes, the first player takes the 2 piles at that end, 



\ 

CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 515 

the player on his right the next 2 piles; the third player to the right, 
the next two, and the fourth player the remaining rows. But if the 
dice fall near the middle of the stack, the first player takes the 2 
middle rows; the player on his right the piles on the right and left of 
the middle ones, the third player the piles outside of these, and the 
fourth player the piles at the ends. The first ijlayer leads by placing 
1, 2, 3, or 4 pieces face up on the table. One piece of either suit may 
be thus led, and a higher piece of the same suit will be required to 
take it; or a pair of either suit may be led, and a higher pair of the 
same suit will be required to take it; or one or both pieces of the first, 
second, third, or fourth pair of one suit (see pi. 5) may be led with 
one or both pieces of the corresponding pair of the other suit, and 2 
3, or 4 pieces of corresi)onding higher pairs will be required to take 
them. That is, one or both of the 6-6 may be led with one or both of 
the pair 6-3, 4-5, and the pair of 1-1 with one or both of the pair 6-2, 5-3, 
and vice versa. 

The other players follow from right to left, by playing as many jneces 
as are led, i:)utting them on top of those on the table if they are higher, 
or beneath if they are lower than those already played. They are not 
required to follow suit. The winner leads again, and the game is con- 
tinued until all the dominoes have been played. The player who takes 
the last round wins the game. He becomes the tsd chong for the next 
game. It is required of the winner, however, to take at least 2 tricks, 
so that if only 1 piece is led on the last round a player who has not 
won a trick is not allowed to take the trick, and the game goes to the 
next higher player. Td fin kau is invariably played for money. A 
trick counts 1 point, for which any sum may be agreed upon. At the 
end of the game the players each pay the winner according to the 
number of tricks they have taken. The holder of 4 or more tricks pays 
nothing; of 2 tricks, for 2 x)oiiits; of 1 trick, for 3 points, and a player 
who does not take a trick for 5 points. The first player, or tsd chong, 
however, always pays twice the amount when he loses, and is paid 
double when he wins, and so on throughout the game, paying and 
receiving in every case twice as much as the other players. Should 
the^so chong^ ihrough winning the last round, hold bis position over iuto 
the next game, his gains and losses are then in the ratio of 3 to 1 to 
those of the other players. In the third game they would be as 4 to 1, 
and so on. 

If any player except the first player wins a round with the pair 2-4 
1-2, called chi tsUn., the first player must pay him 4 times, and the 
other players twice the sum agreed upon for 1 point; but if the first 
player takes a round with the chi tsiin, tiie other players must ])ay him 
4 times the value of a point. 

If any player except the first takes a round with 4 pieces of 2 
corresponding pairs, the first player pays hnn 8 times and the other 
])Iayers 4 times the value of a point, but if the first player takes the 
round the other players pay him 8 times the value of a point. 



f)16 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



If a player takes 2 rounds with the chi tsiin or 2 rounds with 2 
corresponding pairs in 2 successive games, the amounts that must be 
paid him by the other phiyers are doubled, and if he takes 3 such rounds 
in succession they are trebled. In gambling houses the winner of a 
round with the chi tsiin must put the value of I point and the winner 
with 2 corresponding pairs of 2 points in a box for the house. This 
constitutes the only revenue derived by gambling houses from thegame. 

It is said that the custom of requiring the winner to take at least 2 



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Fig. 20. 
ARRANGEMENT OF DOMINOES IN GAME OF HOI T'AP. 

tricks is an innovation of the last hundred years. Formerly the person 
taking the last trick became the winner, although it was the only trick 
taken by him during the game. 

HOI t'Ip. 

Hoi Vdp, "to open the pagoda," is a game of solitaire played with 
dominoes. One set of dominoes are placed face down and arranged in 
the form of a pyramid, with 2 pieces at the apex and 4, 5, G, 7, and 8, 
m the successive rows beneath, as shown in the diagram on the left of 

fig. 20. 

The center domino. A, in the third row from the top, is then pushed 
down, taking with it the small pyramid composed of the pieces B, of 



Report of National Museum, 1893. — Culm. 



Plate 6. 



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Method of pairing Chinese Dominoes in the game of Kap t'ai shap. 



Report of National Museunn, 1893. — Culm. 



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Combinations of Dominoes, significant in fortune telling. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 517 

the fourth row, D, E, F of the fifth row, and G, H, I, K of the sixth 
row. The piece A is then placed transversely, face up, across the top 
of the original pyramid, and the other pieces that were withdrawn 
formed into a line, face up, at its base; the pairs G-H and I-K being 
put at the ends, D and F within them, B, C next within and E in the 
middle, as in the diagram on the right of tig. 20. The players then 
proceed to mate the pieces that are faceup, according to the arrangement 
found on pi. 5. When no more pairs can be made with the exposed 
pieces the outside piece on the right of the second row from the top 
may be reversed. If it can not be paired it is left in its place, but if 
mated the outside piece on the third row is liberated, and may be 
reversed, and so on. When the right-hand side is blocked, the piece 
on the left of the second row may be reversed, and the same plan followed 
as before. When the piece A is mated the two pieces beneath it may 
be reversed j and the removal of the two pieces at the ends of the lowest 
row, as G H, permits the pieces directly above them to be reversed. 
The process is continued until the game is blocked, or the player has 
mated all the pieces comprising the pyramid. 

This game is said to be used in divination, the success or failure in 
mating all the pieces being regarded as furnishing a clew to the deter- 
mination of the event under consideration. 

FORTUNE TELLINGr WITH DOMINOES. 

Dominoes are regularly used in fortune telling in China at the present 
day, and their use for this purpose is generally known to the laborers 
who come to America. I have before me a book entitled N'gd p^di shan 
sho Vo chii tsUung Mi, "a chart for finding out the numbers by divine 
aid and with ivory dominoes, with an explanation and commentary." 
This work was printed in Canton in 1865, the name of the author 
being given as Ch'ing Kgok. The preface, which professes to explain 
the attributes and astrological significance of the dominoes, is followed 
by a series of diagrams illustrating different combinations formed with 
dominoes taken three, or in one class, two at a time. Specimens of the 
different classes are represented in pi. 7. 

The following names and numerical values are given to them: 

pat t'ung, ''unlike/' counts 6. 

Jw}) hdu, ''ingeniously divided," counts 4. 

'ng taz', "five spots," counts 5. 

fan sheung, '" divided reciprocally," counts 3. 

ma kivan, ''cavalry," counts 3. 

i sdm Ink, "two, three, six," counts 3. 

iu i sdm, "ace, two, three," counts 3. 

tui isz', " corresponding spots," counts 3. 

ching fdi, "correctly satisfied," counts 1. 

In telling fortunes an entire set of dominoes is placed face down upon 
a table and well mixed. The dominoes are then all placed side by side 
in a row and reversed. The manipulator selects from this row as many 



518 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

combinations as possible, formed by adjacent pieces, according to the 
diagrams, and adds together the numbers corresponding with them. 
This sum is referred to the following table and result noted: 

1 to 4 is to be esteemed hd hd, " lowest." 
5 to 7 is to be esteemed chung hd, " below the middle." 
8 to 9 is to be esteemed chung p'ing, " even middle." 
10 to 11 is to be esteemed shSung sheuvg, " highest." 

The dominoes are then reversed again and mixed, and the preceding 
operations twice repeated, and 3 sets of terms from the above series 
obtained. Eeference is then made to the text of the book. This con- 
sists of 125 pages, arranged in order under all the different combina- 
tions that may be formed with the 5 pairs of terms given above, taken 
3 pairs at a time, commencing with sheung shemig, sheung sheung, sheiing 
sheung. An oracular verse, apparently of original composition, is found 
on each page, referring to some well-known personage or incident, with a 
short text to aid the diviner in applying the prognostication to the various 
affairs of life. 

DOMINOES FROM FUHCHAU. 

Before proceeding to discuss the origin and antiquity of the Chinese 
game, an account will be given of dominoes used in other parts of China, 
and among the people of the adjacent countries. 

A set of dominoes from Fuhchau* in the Oriental Section of the 
Museum of Archaeology and Palaeontology of the University of Pennsyl- 
vania is made of bamboo and numbers 32 pieces. They measure |^ 
by If by -§-| inch, and have slightly curved faces that follow the natural 
curve of the reed. The concave faces are marked with incised spots 
that are painted red and green, and are arranged in the Chinese series 
(fig. 17), green taking the place of black spots. These dominoes are 
accompanied with 16 wooden disks resembling draughtsmen, an inch 
in diameter, the faces of which are reproduced in X3late 8. They 
each bear a Chinese character referring to one of the 16 pairs formed 
with the 32 dominoes.t Four of these, f m, ti, yan, and ivo, are the same 

* Received through the courtesy of J. P. Cowles, esq., U. S. vice-consul, Fuhchau. 

tProf. Rudolfo Lanciani, in the Atheuseum, January 7, 1888, gave an account of 
the discovery of a tomb in Perugia twenty-one centuries old, in which an inveterate 
gambler had been buried together with his gambling apparatus. Among other 
remarkable sets were *'16 tesserce, or labels, cut in boue, 4 inches long, with a word 
engraved on one side and a numl)er on the other." The importance of the discovery 
is concentrated on the words and numbers engraved on the bone labels. The ancients 
used to give a special name to a certain number, or addition of numbers, which they 
obtained by throwing the dice, * * * As regards the newly discovered labels, it 
appears that any number from 1 to 12 was considered a very bad throw, and conse- 
quently the corresponding words or names were very objectionable indeed (Moechus 
Vappa, ect.). The "13" is neither good nor bad; heuce its name, vix rides, ''you 
hardly smile." The names corresponding to higher numbers are all of good omen, 
such as benignus (25), amator (30), and/e/ix (60), which seems to be the maximum of 
the game discovered at Perugia." While the agreement of number of tablets in this 
Etruscan series with those in the Chinese is probably a mere coincidence,it is curious to 
note theoccurrence of such similar usages in ages and countries so widely separated. 



Report of National Museum, 1893. — Culin. 



Plate 8. 



















Faces of Wooden Discs accompanying Dominoes from Fuhchau. 

From specimens in the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania. 



Report of National Museum, 1893. — Culin. 



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Cat. xo. rroai, u. s. n. m. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 519 

as those used to designate the four highest pieces in the man series, 
plate 5, but the remainder, in place of the vulgar names usually given 
to the other pairs, have the characters shii., ngau^fii, to, lung^ she, md, 
yeung^ hau, Icai, hiln, and chit, which represent the names ''rat," "ox,'' 
''tiger," "hare," ''dragon," "serpent," "horse," "goat," "monkey," 
" cock," "dog," and "pig," the 12 animals of the duodenary cycle.* I 
understand these discs are used in connection with a kind of lottery. 

I am informed that bamboo dominoes, similar to the above, are used 
at Shanghai, and at all the Chinese ports from Fuhchau northward. 

There are several very interesting sets of Chinese dominoes from 
Fuhchau in the museum of the Long Island Historical Society, Brooklyn, 
N. Y. f One of these sets (A) consists of 126 marked pieces and 
2 blanks. They are made of bamboo, faced with bone or ivory, which 
is attached to the wood with glue, or, in the case of one of the sets, 
with small brass pins. The pieces measure about J by | by f inch. 
This set is composed : first, of 3 suits of 21 pieces marked with black 
and red dots, each comprising the Chinese series without the dupli- 
cates; second, of 2 suits of 21 pieces, similarly marked Avith black and 
red dots with the addition of ornamental devices of iiowers in red and 
green; third, of 1 suit of 21 pieces, each with double sets of dots, 1 
set being placed at each end of the pieces, and between certain devices 
in red and green, comprising the emblems of the Eight Genii, the 
characters for ''sun" and "moon," a tiger, and various flowers. 

A similar set was exhibited by W. H. Wilkinson, esq.. Her British 
^lajesty's consul-general, Seoul, Korea, in his collection in the section of 
games at the Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893. They were from 
Shanghai, and designated as Hua ho {fa lio) ' 'flower harmony." t 

Another set (B) in the museum of the Long Island Historical Society 
comprises 141 marked pieces and 2 blanks. They are made of bamboo 
with a bone or ivory face, which is skillfully mortised to the wood, and 
measure ^ by § by f inch. This set is composed : 

First, of 1 suits of 9 pieces each, marked in red, green, and blue, 
with from 1 to 9 circles. 

Second, of 4 suits of 9 pieces each, marked in red and green, with 
fi'om 1 to 9 narrow rectangles. 

Third, of 4 suits of 9 pieces each, marked with the characters yat 
mdtty "one ten thousand," to Icau man, or "nine ten thousand." The 
characters for "one" to "nine" are in blue, and that for num, "ten thou- 
sand," is in red. 

Fourth, of 4 pieces marked _prtX', "north," in blue; of 4 pieces marked 
nam, "south," in blue; of 4 pieces marked tting, "east," in blue; of 4 



* Chinese Reader's Manual, i)art 2, No. 301. 

tThe gift of the Hon. George Glover, formerly IT. S. consul at Fuhchau. There 
' is a similar collection given by him in the American Museum of Natural History, 
Central Park, New York. 

tCf. Descriptive Catalogue World's Columbian F.xposition, Department M, revised 
edition, p. 87. 



520 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

pieces marked sai, '' west," in blue; of 4 pieces marked chung, "middle," 
in blue; 1 i:)iece muTked pak icong^ "northern ruler," in red and blue; 1 
piece marked nam wong, "southern ruler," in red and blue; 1 piece 
marked tung wong^ "eastern ruler," in red and blue; 1 piece marked 
sai ico7ig^ "western ruler," in red and blue; 1 piece marked chung wong, 
"middle ruler," in red and blue; 1 x)iece marked fin wong, "heavenly 
ruler," in red and blue; 1 piece marked ti wong, "earthly ruler," in red 
and blue; 1 piece msbTkedyan wong, "human ruler," in red and blue; 1 
piece marked wo ivong, "harmony ruler," in red and blue; 1 piece marked 
cWu7i^ "spring," in red; 1 piece marked M, "summer," in red; 1 piece 
marked ts'au^ "autumn," in red; 1 piece marked tung^ "winter." 

Fifth, i){ 8 blank pieces. 

A set nearly identical with this was also exhibited by Mr. Wilkinson. 
It lacked the pieces designated as "rulers of the five directions," the 
tHn^ ti, yan, and wo wong, and the 4 pieces with the names of the sea- 
sons. It had, however, 4 pieces bearing the character fat. This set 
was from Ningpo, and was designated by Mr. Wilkinson as chung fa 
(chung fat). "The coloring," he states, "whether in red, green, or 
blue, is purely ornamental, and has nothing to do with the play of the 
game.* 

Another set (0), from Fuhchau, in the museum of the Long Island 
Historical Society, is made entirely of bamboo. This set is composed 
of 32 pieces, measuring J by 1% by -f^ inch. They are inscribed on one 
face with the usual dots and the characters that represent the names 
of the pieces of the Chinese-game of chess, tseung ¥i. 

These marks are arranged as follows: 

. 6t6 6-6, Mi, ''chariot/' in red. 
1-1 1-1, tseung, ''elephant," in green. 
4-4 4-4, kii, " chariot," in red. 
1-3 1-3, aeung, " elephant/Mn red. 
5-5 5-5, tsut, " soldier," in red. 
3-3 3-3, ping, " soldier," in green. 
2-2 2-2, 8z\ "secretary," in green. 
5-6 5-6, ma, " horse," in green. 
4-6 4-6, md, ''horse," in red. 
1-6 1-6, tsut, "soldier," in red. 
1-5 1-5, tsut, "soldier," in red. 
6-3 4-5, sz', "secretary," in red. 
6-2 5-3, p'aw, " cannon," in red. 
4-3 5-2, p'du, "cannon," in green. 
1-4, ping, " soldier," in red. 
2-3, tsut, "soldier," in red. 
2-4, tseung, "general," in green. 
1-2, shut, " general," in red. 

Mr. Himlj^t describes a set of Chinese bamboo dominoes, 32 in the 
set, with the characters of the chessmen, which is identical with the 

* Descriptive Catalogue, p. 87. 

tZeitschrift des deutscher Morgenliindischer Gesellschaft, Baud 43, p. 453. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 521 

preceding, except for slight variations in the association of the names 
of the chessmen on the dotted pieces. He offers it in explanation of 
the number, 32, of the domino game, and says that it could only have 
been made to save space while traveling. As in the i)receding, the 32 
dominoes do correspond, piece for piece, with the 32 men in the Chinese 
game of chess. It is clear that the devices on some, at least, of the other 
decorated dominoes were copied from playing cards, those on the set A 
being identical in number as well as in devices with a set of the dotted 
cards from Fuhchau in the same collection, while the set B has the 
names of the familiar suit marks, ping^ soJc^ and md?i, of the cards; 
hence it is i^ossible that the '^ chess dominoes" were imitated from the 
corresponding "chess cards," and that the true explanation of the 
number of the domino j)ieces must be found elsewhere. 

Mr. W. H. Wilkinson also exhibited at the Columbian Exposition a 
set of dominoes from Wenchow, called hua tang chin, " flowery tang 
►chiu." They consist of 5 suits of 21 pieces each and 17 extra pieces 
(total, 122) and 4 blanks. The extra pieces are (1) 6-6 6-3, (2) 1-1 1-3, 
(3^ 4_4 i_3^ (4) 2-4 4-4, (5) 3-3 5-6, (6) 1-2 2-2, (7) 1-2 2-4, (8) 4-5 5-5, 
(9), (10), (11) 3 pieces marked with the sequence 1-6 — that is, 1-4 2-6 
3-5 ; 1-6 2-5 3-4; 1-5 2-3 4-6, and 6 pieces bearing the characters 
{a) wen, "civilian;" (&) wu, "military;" (c) tsung, "universal;" (<Z) t'ai, 
" highness;" (e) ho, "lily;" (/) p'ei, "heap up." " The blanks are used 
only to replace cards lost." The material was wood, stained black, 
with incised sjDots, painted white and red. " The coloring of the cards 
is immaterial." They measured 1 by ^ by -j^q .iiich, and the inner face 
was slightly concave, like the dominoes from Fuhchau, mentioned on 
page 518.* 

CH'ir p'ai. 

Another form of Chinese dominoes remains to be described which are 
current at Tientsin. There are the ch^iu p\ii, "leaping dominoes,"! 
which consist of 32 slips of bamboo about 14 inches in length, with the 
domino spots marked at one end, contained in a cylindrical bamboo box. 
This game is carried on by cake, candy, and fruit sellers. The player 
draws 3 of the bamboo slips, and if the 3 marks form what is described 
under the following account of Korean dominoes, pages 523, 524, as yat 
pi'di^ "perfect tablets," the player wins; if not he loses. 

KOREAN DOMINOES. 

A set of Korean dominoes from Seoul (pi. 9) in the National 
Museum is made of ivory and numbers 32 pieces. They measure % by 
^ by f^ inches, and are marked with incised spots arranged according 
to the Chinese system. Tlie "one" and "four" spot^s are painted red 
and all the others black, and the "one" spots are much larger than the 
others and very deeply incised. 



* Cf. Descriptive Catalogue, p. 88. 

t There is a set from Fuhchau in the museum of the Long Island Historical Society. 



522 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

The KoreaDS call dinniuoes kol-hpai (Chinese Tcwat phii), ^'bone tab- 
lets." A more correct name is said to be ho-hpai, (Chinese XI p'di)^ " bar- 
barian tablets." This latter name is also applied to a S])ecial game. 
The 32 dominoes are paired as shown in pi. 6, those of which there are 
two being mated with each other, and those of which there are but one 
with reference to the sum of the spots, but not in the manner of the 
Chinese series (PI. 5). 

The pieces receive the same names as those of the dice throws of 
the Korean game Ssang-ryouk^ '^ backgammon," viz: 

1-1, si/o-syo (Chinese siii siu), '' smallest." 
1-2, tjoui-hko (Chinese shiipi), "rat nose." 
1-3, syo sam (Chinese siii sdm), ''small and three." 
1-4, ptiik sd (Chinese j?aA; sz'), " white and four." 
1-5, pcHk i (Chinese pafc 'ng), "white and five." 
1-6, pdik ryoiik (Chinese j^afc luk), " white and six." 
2-2, tjoun-a (Chinese tsun a), "superior two." 
2-3, a sam (Chinese a sam), ''two and three." 
2-4, a sd (Chinese d sz'), "two and four." 
2-5, koan-a (Chinese kun a), "sovereign two." 
2-6, a ryouk (Chinese a luk), "two and six." 
3-3, tjyang-sam (Chinese ch'eung sdm), "long three." 
3-4, sam sd (Chinese sdm sz'), "three four." 
3-5, sam o (Chinese sdm 'ng), "three and five." 
3-6, sam ryouk (Chinese sdm luk), "three and six." 
4-4, ijoun-hong (Chinese tsmi hung), " superior red." 
4-5, sd (Chinese sz' 'ng), " four and five." 
4-6, sd ryouk (Chinese sz' luk), "four and six." 
5-5, tjoun (Chinese tsun 'ng), "superior five." 
5-6, ryouk (Chinese 'ng luk), "five and six." 
6-6, tjoun-ryouk (Chinese tsun luk), "superior six." 

Dominoes are regarded as a vulgar game in Korea. They are used in 
gambling houses and are not much played as a social game by the higher 
classes. 

HO-HPAI. 

The commonest Korean game of dominoes is called Eo-hpai^ i. e., 
'^ Barbarian tablets." It is played by 3 or 4 persons. When 4 persons 
play an entire set of dominoes are used. When 3 play the following 
pieces are withdrawn : 6-6^ 5-5, 4-4, and 3-3. The dominoes are turned 
face down and shuffled. On commencing to play, the players all draw 
1 piece to decide who shall play first. The one who gets the piece with 
the highest number of spots becomes the Tjyang-ouen (Chinese, Ghong 
iin)* The pieces are again shuffled and the Tjyang-ouen draws 7 pieces 
and each of the other players G. The Tjyang-ouen then whirls his 7 
pieces about between his fingers in the right hand until 1 xDieoe slips 
out. This piece he turns face up. Should the piece turned up be either 
5-4, 1-2, 1-4 or 2-3 he keeps the pieces he has drawn. If it should be 
either 6-6, 5-5, 4-4, 3-3, 2-2, 1-1, 6-5, 6-4, 6-1, 5-1, or 3-1, that is to 

* This title is that of the first of the literary graduates in Korea. The same name 
is applied to the first of the Hanlin doctors in China. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 523 

say oue of the pieces of which there are duplicates, he hands his 6 
pieces that are yet undisclosed to the player on his right who in turn 
gives his pieces to the player next to him, and so on until the Tjyang- 
ouen receives those of the fourth i)layer. If on the other hand, he 
turns up either 6-3, 6-2, 5-3, 5-2, 4-3, or 4-2, he hands his 6 pieces to the 
player on the leit who in turn gives his pieces to his immediate neighbor 
until the Tjyang-ouen receives those from the player on the right. The 
seventh piece that was turned up is now turned down and mixed with 
the remaining pieces, which are placed side by side in a line, and covered 
with a slip of paper, or a strip of bamboo made for the purpose. If 
the Tjyang-ouen keeps his pieces, he becomes the first player, but if he 
exchanges them, the one on the right or left to whom he gave his pieces 
becomes the first player. In this game certain combinations of 3 pieces 
are called han-hpai {Chinese yat p' di), "perfect tablets," and the object 
of the game is to get 2 such combinations. The game is then spoken of 
as hte-tjye-ta, "broken". Ho-hpai is played for money and a certain 
stake agreed upon, the player winning once, twice, thrice, four or five 
times this amount for each player, according to the combination which 
composes his winning hand. These combinations and the numbers they 
count are as follows : 

(1) A sequence, as 1-3, 2-4, 5-6, called ssang-syo-han-hpai (Chinese^ 
sheiing tsil yat p\H)^ counts 3 in combination with another ssang-syo^ and 
1, in combination with any other hanhpai. A ssang-syo composed of 6 
pieces, Avhich pair according to the Korean system, is called tdi-sd-ttai 
(Chinese, tui sz^ tai), literally, "corresponding four times," and counts 
4, the name referring to the count. 

(2) The sequence 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4, 1-5, 1-6, and the corresponding 
sequences in which 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2 replace the ones in this example, are 
caWed pou-tong (Chinese, pat fung)^ " unlike," and count as follows: 

1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4, 1-5, 1-6 counts 3. 
2-1, 2-2, 2-3, 2-4, 2-5, 2-6 counts 5. 
3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 3-4, 3-5, 3-6 counts 3. 
4-1, 4-2, 4-3, 4-4, 4-5, 4-6 counts 3. 
5-1, 5-2, 5-3, 5-4, 5-5, 5-6 counts 4. 
6-1. 6-2, 6-3, 6-4, 6-5, 6-6 counts 3. 

(3) The sequence 1-2, 3-6, 4-5, 1-4, 2-6, 3-5, called hol-s.sang-syo (Chi^ 
nese, tukshenng tsii), "solitary double sequence, "counts 5. 

(4) Two doublets, and 1 piece upon which the sum of the spots, or 1 
of the 2 sets of spots is equal to the single number of the doublets, as 
1-4, 5-5, 5-5, or 4-2, 4-4, 4-4, called sole (Chinese, noi), "inclosed,'^ 
counts 1, both when paired with anothei* sole or any other hanhpai. A 
hanhpai composed of sixes is called ryonl-solc; of fives, o-sol'; of fours, 
hong-sok; of threes, sam-soTc; of twos, a-fiol', and of ones, pdik-sok. 

(5) Three pieces ux)on whicli the spots are equally divided between 
* 2 numbers, as 4-4, 2-4, 2-2, called tai-sam-tong (Chinese, ttii sdm fung)^ 

"three alike, op(»08ite," count 1. 



524 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

(6) The combination 6-6, 5-5, 4-4, called ro-in (Chinese, Id yan), "old 
man," counts 3 when combined with itself and 1 with any other han- 
hpai. The combination 3-3, 2-2, 1-1, called a-M (Chinese, a chi), 
"child," counts 3 when combined with itself and 1 with any other 
hanhpai. 

(7) The combination 6-6, 3-3, 2-2, called ssang-pyen (Chinese, sheung 
pin), "doublets," counts 3 when combined with itself and 1 with any 
other hanhpai. The combinations 2-3, 3-1, 1-2, and 4-5, 5-6, 4-6, 
called Yo-8oun, count 3 when combined with each other and 1 in com- 
bination with any other han-hpai. 

As the sok are combinations which may be formed very easily, it is 
sometimes agreed to play without them. If the first player has not 
drawn a winning hand he puts down a piece from his hand at the end 
that is nearest to him of the concealed row and takes up the piece at 
the other end, at the same time sliding the row of pieces along, so that 
the piece he puts down is concealed, and the piece he takes uj) is exposed. 
If he then does not make a winning combination, the next player, if he 
has not already a winning combination, puts down a piece and takes up 
another as before, and this is continued until some one obtains a win- 
ning combination, and so wins the game. He then becomes the Tjyang- 
ouen in the next game. 

TJAK-MA-TCHI-KI. 

Tjak-matchi-M, "pair making," is played by 2, 3, or 4 persons. The 
pieces are reversed and shuffled and covered with paper. The first 
player draws 6 and the other players each draw 5 dominoes. The first 
player endeavors to play out a pair from those he has drawn, but if he 
is unsuccessful he lays out 1 piece face up on the table. The second 
player takes up the piece discarded if he can combine it with a domino 
in his hand to form a pair. If not, he draws a piece from those left 
under the paper, and discards a domino, which he lays out face up. 
This process is continued around until 1 player gets 3 pairs in his hand, 
and becomes the winner. When 2 or 3 play, the 6-6 can not be played 
to complete the third pair, but when 4 play it may thus be played 
and the winner must be paid alone by the player who discarded the 
corresponding piece. 

If the pair is completed by a piece drawn from the unused pile, all 
the other players pay the winner, but if it is completed by apiece which 
has been discarded, the player who discarded that piece alone pays the 
winner. It is sometimes agreed that the third pair by which a player 
wins must be completed with a piece drawn from the unused pile. 

KKO-RI-POUT-TCHI-KI. 

Kko-ri-pout-tchi-lci, " tail joining," is played by 2, 3, or 4 i)ersons ; 3 or 4 
usually play. The set of dominoes are reversed and shuffled and each 
player draws 8 dominoes. When 3 play, the pieces 6-6, 5-5, 4-4, and 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 525 

3-3 are first withdrawn. The game is begun by someone asking who 
has the koan a ? The holder of this piece, the 5-2, lays down any 
piece he may select from his hand, face up, at the same time crying out 
a number on one side of it, which number must be paired. The next 
player must mate the side designated with one of his pieces, but if 
unable to do so, must lay a piece from his hand, face down on the table. 
The game is continued around until all have been paired or all have 
laid down their jjieces. Then each counts the spots on the pieces they 
have been compelled to lay down, which naturally have been selected 
from those with the fewest spots in their hands, and the one who has the 
highest number of spots pays the one who has the lowest number of 
spots. When 4 play, all players who count more than 30 must pay. 

KOL-YE-SI.* 

Kol-ye-si is played by two or more persons, not exceeding ten. The 
set of dominoes is placed face down and shuffled, and part, if not all 
of the set, are placed end to end in an irregular line. One of the 
players acts as banker, Moul-tjyou (Chinese, Mat chit ^'things' ruler").. 
The other players each draw 1 piece in turn from the line. The}^ exam- 
ine this piece and each jjut whatever stake they choose on the piece 
drawn. The Moul-tjyou puts down the same amount, whatever it may 
be, beside each player's stake and takes the next 2 pieces. If his pieces, 
are identical, a perfect pair, he at once wins all that has been staked. 
Otherwise the other players draw in turn either 1 or 2 pieces from 
the line. This done, they and t\iQ Moul-tjyou twvw their pieces face up. 
They all count the spots on their dominoes. The remainders, after deduc- 
ting the tens, count, and if the Moul-tjyou has an excess over that of 
any player, he takes the stakes, but if a player has an excess over that 
of t\i^ Moul-tjyou when the tens are deducted from the sum of the spots,, 
that player wins the amount of the stake he has staked. 

This is a common game in gambling houses. It is customary to keep 
a water jar there, in which the players voluntarily x^i^t a portion of 
their stakes before the result is disclosed, or, if unmindful, at the sug- 
gestion of some one interested in tlie house. 

RYONG-HPAI. 

Dominoes are used in Korea as in China in ])laying solitaire, wliicli^ 
as in China, is a favorite kind of sortilage, not regarded seriously, but 
often played at the beginning of the day, the player wishing for a happy 
omen. The solitaire game described under tlie name of hoi fdpy 
page 516, is known under the name of Ryom/hpui (Cliinese, I tiny p''di)y 
'^Dragon tablets," while another arrangement is shown in tig. 20. 



^Kol-ye-si means kol (hpai) or "domiuo" ye-si, the latter being the iiainc of a 
•game played with cards. 



526 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



KE-POUK-HPAI. 

In this system, called I'epouk-Iqxd (Chinese, kivai p^di), ''Tortoise 
tablets," the 32 dominoes are laid face down to form a representation 

of a tortoise (fig. 21), with 2 pieces 
at head and tail and 2 for legs at 
each of the 4 corners. The pieces 
at these extremities are turned 
face up, followed by those marked 
A, B, 0, D, and mated according to 
the Korean system, (pi. 9). The 
player loses when he fails to mate 
all the pieces. 

SIN-SYO-TYEN. 

Sin-syo-tyen (Chinese, shan sho 
chim)^ "personally counting divi- 
nation," is a kind of fortune telling 
practiced with dominoes. The in- 
quirer shufdes a set of dominoes 
face down and arranges them side 
by side in a line. He then turns 
them face up, preserving the ar- 
rangement, and selects as many of 
the combinations referred to on 
pages 523, 524, as can be formed by 

-contiguous pieces. The sum of the numbers there given, in connection 

with the combinations thus formed is noted, 

^nd the operation twice repeated. The three 

results are added together, and if their sum 

amounts to 32, the number of the domino pieces, 

the augury is very good; more or less being 

•estimated proportionally good or indifferent. 




Fio. 21. 

ARRANGEMENT OF DOMINOES IN KE-POUK-HPAI, 
"TORTOISE TABLETS :" KOREA. 



O-KOAN. 

Anotlier popular method of divination with 
-dominoes is called o-koan (Chinese, ^ng kivdn), 
" 5 gateways." 

An entire set of 8 dominoes is reversed and 
-shuffled and 20 pieces are then arranged face 
down in 5 rows of 4 pieces each (fig. 22). The 
player then turns these pieces face up and com- 
mencing at the bottom row endeavors to form 
combinations of 3 i)ieceseach, hanhpai such as 
have been described under ho-hpai In addi- 
tion to the hanhpai already enumerated, pages 
523, 524, the following additional ones are permitted in o-lcoan: Three 
pieces upon which 3 of the spots are alike and the sum of the other 3 



- I 1 I 1 I 

~ I 1 I ' I 

_i I I I I I 



B 

Fii 



D 



22. 



ARRANGEMENT OF DOMINOES IN 
GAME OF OKOAN: KOREA. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 527 

spots is equal to 5, called mmtong-ian-o-tyem (Cbiuese stim fung tuning 
f(m), "three alike and only five spots," and 3 pieces upon wliicli 3 of 
the spots are alike and the sum of the other 3 spots is equal to or more 
than 14, called sam-toug-sip-'sd-tyem (Chinese sdm fung shcq) sz^ tim), 
"three alike and fourteen spots." 

In forming these combinations, 3 contiguous pieces in a row ma}' be 
taken, or 1 or 2 pieces at one end of a row may be used in combination 
with 2 pieces or 1 piece at the other end, the pieces thus taken being 
always placed on the inner side. Thus the piece A may be mated with 
D to form a combination A C D, or B A may be mated with D to 
form a combination A B D. The combinations thus formed are 
removed and j)laced in a line face up above the 5 rows, the one found 
nearest tlie bottom being placed to tlie left and successive ones to the 
right of the line thus started. When no more combinations can be 
discovered, 5 pieces are*drawn from the unused pile of 12 pieces which 
have been left with their faces down, and one-of them placed face down 
to the right of each of the 5 rows. These 5 ijieces are then turned face 
up, and an attempt made to form combinations of threes 'with their 
aid. The results are successively placed to the right of the line at 
the top and this process is continued until the 12- extra pieces are 
exhausted. When this hapi^ens, 5 pieces are withdrawn from the left 
of the top line and added in succession to right of the 5 rows. If, by 
chance, but 4 or a less number of rows remain, only a corresponding 
number of i)ieces are drawn. This x)rocess is continued over and over 
until all the pieces are combined in sets of threes in a long row at the 
toi), or the top row is exhausted and a block ensues, determining suc- 
cess or failure. The name of the game is said to have been taken from 
a well-known episode in the life of Koan On* (Chinese, Kivdn U), the 

*Kwun Yii {Kwdn tJ) D. A. D. 219. Designated Kwau Chwaug Miu aud deified 
as Kwan Ti or Wu Ti, the God of War. A native of Kiai Chow, in Shan-si, who 
rose to celebrity toward the close of the second century through his alliance with 
Liu Pei and Chang Fei in the struggles which ushered in the period of the Three 
Kingdoms. He is reputed to have been, in early life, a seller of bean-curd, but to 
have subsequently applied himself to study until, in A. D. 184, he casually encoun- 
tered Liu Pei at a time when the latter was about to take up arms in defense of the 
house of Han against the rebellion of the Yellow Turbans. He joined Liu Pei aud 
his confederate, Chang Fei, in a solemn oath, which was sworn in a peach-orchard 
belougingto the latter, that they would tight henceforth side by side and live and die 
together. The fidelity of Kwan Yii to his adopted leaders remained unshaken dur- 
ing a long series of years in spite of many trials; and similarly his attachment to 
Chang Fei continued throughout his life. At an early period of his career he was 
created a t'iug how (baron) by the regent Ts'ao Ts'ao, with the title of H^n shu 
t'iug hau. ^ ^ * Hig martial powers shone conspicuously in many campaigns 
which were waged by Liu Pei before his throne as sovereign of Shu became assured, 
but he fell a victim at last to the superior force and strategy of Sun K'iiau, who 
took him prisoner and caused him to be beheaded. Long celebrated as one of the 
most renowned among China's heroes, he was at length canonized by the superstitious 
HweiT'suug, of the Suugdynasty, early in the Twelfth century, with the title Chung 
hwui Kung. In 1128 he received the still higher title of Chwiiug miu wu ugdn 
wiing. and after many subsequent alterations and additions he was at length raised 
in 1594 by Ming Wan Li to the rank of Ti, or God, since which date, and especially 
since the accession of the Mauchow dynasty, his worshij) as the God of War has been 
firmly established. (Chinese Reader's Manual, No. 297.) 



528 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

celebrated Chinese general, now universally worshiped in China as the 
God of War, and one of the heroes of the famous historical romance, 
the Sam Ktvok chi, or "Annals of Three States." In escaping from 
Ts'ao Ts'ao,* it is recorded that he killed six generals at " five frontier 
passes," o-koan (Chinese ^ng Jcwdn). The vicissitudes of his life at 
this time are typified in the varying fortunes of the game, which at one 
moment approaches a successful termination, only for the player to be 
unexpectedly set back to overcome its obstacles anew. The conquest 
of the " five JcoaUj^^ which Koan Ou achieved, finds it analogue in the 
5 rows of the dominoes which the player struggles to overcome. Many 
educated people play this game every morning, and scholars who have 
nothing to do play it all day long, finding intellectual pastime in its 
elusive permutations. 

BURMESE AND SHAN DOMINOES. 

A set of Burmese dominoes in the National Museum are of teak 
wood and measure 2 by 1 by | inches (pi. 10). The spots are marked 
with incised circles. They number 24 pieces, marked as follows: 6-6, 
1-1, 4-4, 1-3, 5-5,.3-3, and 2-2 duplicated, and one each of the following 
pie(5es : 6-3, 4-5, 6-2, 5-3, 4-3, 5-2, 2-4, 1-4, 2-3, and 1-2, the last having 
2 smaller spots adjoining the "1." 

They are accompanied by a cubical die about three-fourths inch 
square, with 2 opposite faces marked with 1 spot, 2 opposite faces 
marked with 2 spots, and 2 opposite faces marked with 3 spots. This 
is used to decide who shall play first. 

A set of Burmese dominoes, from Rangoon, sent to the writer by the 
Hon. Sir C. H. T. Orosthwaite, lieutenant-general Northwest Prov- 
inces, British India, are identical with the preceding, except that the 
spots are marked with small brass diskk 

A set of Burmese dominoes in the British Museum are made of black 
horn, and number 32 pieces. They measure If inches in length by 
three-fourths of an inch in width and have incised spots, which are 
painted red and yellow and arranged according to the Chinese system. 
The backs are uniformly marked with ''1" and '^3" spots composed of 
concentric circles, and the ends each bear 1 spot similarly inscribed. 
Another set of Burmese dommoes in the same collection are made of 
black wood, with the spots painted red and white. 

Dice are called anzamia ( singular anzd) in Burmese. The Burmese 
dice in the museum of the University of Pennsylvania are small ivory 
cubes, regularly marked and having the fours in red, and are identical 
with the Chinese. 

A set of Shan dominoes in the British Museum, i)resented by Maj. 
E. B. Gladen, are identical in every respect with the horn dominoes 
from Burma in the same museum. 



* Ts'ao Ts'ao D., A. D. 220. Chinese Reader's Manual, No. 768. 



Report of National Museum, 1893. — Culin. 



Plate 12. 




Eskimo Dominoes. 

Cat. No. 76880, U. S. N. M. 



Report of National Museum, 1893.— Culin. 



Plate 10. 



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Cat. No. 160.540, U. S. N. M. 



Report of National Museum, 1893.— Culin. 



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Siamese Dominoes. 



■'^ 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 529 

SIAMESE D03IIN0ES. 

Dominoes are called in Siamese tan tern t^Chinese td thn) "arranging 
or connecting spots.'' Two sets of dominoes exhibited by the Govern- 
ment of Siam in the Section of Games at the Columbian Exposition 
consist of 1^4 thin rectangular tablets of ivory, one with face of |f by 
1^6, and the other 1|| by || inches (pi. 11). Ihe "ones" and "fours" 
are marked with red and the others with black si^ots, in the following 
series: The pieces 6-6, 1-1, 4-4, 1-3, 5-5, 3-3, 2-2, 5-6, 4-6, 1-6, and 1-5 
duplicated, and one of each of the pieces 6-3 and 6-2. 

ESKIMO DOMINOES. 

A set of Innuit dominoes in the U. S. l^ational Museum, Washington, 
(pi. 12), is described by Mr. Lucien Turner, Avho conducted the expe- 
dition for the Smithsonian Institution in 1884.* 

''The lumiit," Mr. Turner says, ^* wlio come from the western end of Hudson Strait, 
tlie so-called Northerners, have a game which they play with sets of pieces of ivory 
cut into irregular shapes, and marked on one face with spots arranged in diflerent 
patterns. The number of pieces in a set varies from 60 to 148. The name of a set 
is A ma zu a Idt, and somewhat resembles our game of dominoes. 

''The game is X)layed in the following manner: Two or more persons, according to 
the number of pieces in the set, sit down and pile the pieces before them. One of 
the players mixes the pieces together in plain view of the others. When this is 
done he calls them to take the pieces. Each person endeavors to obtain a half or 
third of the number, if there be two»or three players. The one who mixed up the 
pieces lays down a piece and calls his opponent to match it with a piece having a 
similar design. If this can not be done by any of the players the first has to match 
it, and the game continues until one of the players has exhausted all of the pieces 
taken by him. The pieces are designated b}^ pairs, having names such as ka miii tik 
(sled), kaiak (canoe), kale sak (navel), a ma ziit (many), a tau s'ik (1), ma kok {2),'ping 
a sut (3), si td miit (4), and td U mat (5). Each of the names above must be matched 
witli a piece of similar kind, although the other end of the piece may be of a difi'er- 
ent design. A kamutik may be matched with an amazut, if the latter has not a line 
or bar cut across it; if it has a bar it must be matched with an amazut. 

"This game is known to the people of the Ungava district, but those only who 
learn it from the Northerners are able to play it. The northern Eskimo stake the 
last article they possess on the issue of the game. Theirwives are disposed of tem- 
porarily, and often are totally relinquished to the victor. I have heard of wives so 
disposed of often sit down and win themselves back to their former owners." 

Dr. Franz Boas informs me that the Eskimo name for dominoes 
means *' standing upright side by side." 

MISCELLANEOUS GAMES. 

Several fanciful games have come to my notice which have been 
suggested by the European domino game. In the Secticm of Clames in 
the Department of Anthropology at the Columbian Exi)ositioii, Chicago, 
1893, a modern French game was exhibited under the name of Lc Magister 
Dominoes Geograiyhique, consisting of oblong pieces of cardboard, each 
bearing on its face a portion of the map of the Valley of the Seine. 
It was intended to be used for teaching geogra|)liy. Another game. 



'Eleventh Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, 1881>-'90, i)p. 257-258. 

H. Mis. 184, pt. 12 34 



530 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 

entitled '^Evan's Baseball Dominoes," consisted of wooden domino- 
sbaped blocks marked on one face at tlie ends with the names of tbe 
scoring i)oints in tbe American game of baseball. 

INTRODUCTION OF DOMINOES INTO EUROPE. 

From tbe foregoing accounts it will be seen bow widely tbe peculiar 
Obinese game of dominoes is distributed, from Korea to Burma and 
Siam. Dr. Gustav Scblegel states tbat tbe European game of dominoes 
is witbout doubt borrowed from tbe Cbinese, only tbat in it tbe 
pbilosopbic-astronomic elements bave been done away witb and only 
tbe aritbmetical retained. 1 bave been unable to discover tbe connect- 
ing links between tbe two games. Tbe Levant may furnisb a clew to 
tbe relationship if any such now exists, but I am witbout information 
on tbe subject. 

Tbe game seems to date from a recent period in Europe. According 
to Brockhaus' Conversations-Lexicon, Art ''Domino," it was introduced 
into Germany through France from Italy about the middle of the last 
century. In England it appears from a writer in Notes and Queries* 
to bave been introduced by French prisoners about tbe close of tbe 
last century. 

INVENTION OF THE GAME. 

According to a tradition current among the Chinese laborers in tbe 
United States, dominoes were invented by Hung Ming^] a hero of that 
popular romance, the 8dm Kwolc chi,l for the amusement of bis soldiers to 
keep them awake during the watches of tbe night in their camp before 
tbe enemy. Others attribute them to the ingenuity of Keung Vdi Kung,^ 
and give a similar reason for their discovery. A Chinese physician, 
the most scholarly of my informants among his class, insisted that they 
were invented by Fdn Lai,\\ whose picture, from a popular illustrated 
edition of tbe Tung chau lit Tcwolc^'i] is reproduced in fig. 23. Little 
importance need be attached to these stories, which are given as 
illustrations of tbe conflicting statements made by the comparatively 
uneducated Chinese regarding things which are a matter of record. 

Dr. Gustav Scblegel,** quoting from the Chi sz yin kau (CM sz* yarn 
A:aw),tt states that dominoes were invented in 1120 A. D. by a statesman 

* January 23, 1869. 

f Chu-ko Liang {Hung Ming), A. D. 181-234. The great counselor of Liu Pei, who 
owed to the sagacity and military skill of Chu-ko Liang his success in establishing 
himself upon the throne. (The Chinese Reader's Manual, No. 88.) 

t VVyhe, A., Notes on Chinese Literature, Shanghai, 1867, p. 161. 

$ Kiang Tsze-ya {Keung fdi Jcung) is reported to have been a counselor of Si Peh, 
twelfth century B. C. (The Chinese Reader's Manual, No. 257.) 

II Fan Li {Fan Lai), minister of Kow Tsien, Prince of Yiieh, whom he aided to 
overthrow the rival kingdom of V^u, the final victory of which, after twenty years' 
Avarfare, was achieved B. C. 473, (The Chinese Reader's Manual, No. 127.) 

51 Notes on Chinese Literature, p. 162. 

**Chinesische Briluch und Spiele in Europa, Breslau, 1869, p. 18. 

ti Investigations on the traditions of all things. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



531 



who presented them to the Emperor Hwui-tsuDg, and that the game 
with its explanation was locked in the imperial treasury and first came 
into general use in the reign of Hwui-tsung's son, Kao-tsung (1127-1103 
A. D.). 

Mr. Karl Himly* cites Kanghi's Dictionary as saying that according 
to general tradition dominos were invented in the second year of 
Siuen-ho (1120) and circulated abroad by imijerial order at the time of 
Kao-tsung. 

Mr. Ghatto f quotes the other great Chinese dictionary of the last 
century, the Ohing tsz' t'ung, on the authority of Mr. Samuel Birch, as 
saying that the cards now known in China as " Teeii-tsze-pae" [Urn tsz'' 
p^(H)^ or "dotted cards," were invented in the reign of Siuen-ho, 1120, 
and that they began to be common in the reign of Kao-tsung. 

Mr. W. H. Wilkinson has recently shown |that in the citation made 
by Chatto from the Ching tsz' tung, he 
omits the concluding and most important 
sentence: "It»does not follow that this class 
of games originated in the period Hslian-ho," 
and says that the passage, adduced again 
and again by European writers to prove 
that cards (dominoes) were first invented in 
the reign of Siuen-ho, when carefully -^ex- 
amined, distinctly declares that such a con- 
clusion would be unsound. 







"It is perfectly clear," Mr. Wilkinson says, "that 
all that was done or asked for in 1120 was an imperial 
decision as to which of several forms of T'ien-kiu 
(Heavens and Nines) was to be considered orthodox. 
The game and the cards must have been in existence 
long before. The passage from the Cheug-tza-t'img 
runs thus: 'Also ya p'ai, now the instruments of a 
game. A common legend states that in the second 
year of the Hsiian-ho, in the Sung dynasty 
(1120 A. D. ), a certain official memorialized the 

throne, praying that the ya ji'ai (ivory cards) might be fixed as a pack of 32, 
comprising 127 pips (sic, it should be 227, but Chinese printers are careless), in order 
to accord with the expanse of the stars and constellations. The combination, 
'Heaven,' (6 — 6, 6 — 6) consisted of two pieces, containing 24 pips, figures of the 24 
solar periods; * earth ' (1 — 1, 1 — 1) also comjiosed of two pieces, but contained 4 pips, 
the four points of the compass — east, west, south and north; ' man' (4 — 4, 4 — 4) two 
pieces, containing 16 pips, the virtues of humanity, benevolence, propriety and wis- 
dom, fourfold; 'harmony' (1 — 3, 1 — 3) two pieces of eight pips, figuring the breath 
ol ' Harmony' which pervades the eight divisions of the year. The other combina- 
tions had each their names. There were four players having 8 cards apiece for their 
hand, and the cards won or lost according as the number of the pips was less or 
more, the winner being rewarded with counters. In the time of Kao-tsung 



* Zeitschrift der deutscher Morgenllindischea Gesellschaft, Band 43, p. 451. 

+ P'acts and Speculations on the History of Playing Cards. London, 1848, p. 55. 

IThe American Anthropologist, Jan., 1895, vol. viii., No. 1, p. 66. 



532 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



(1127-1163) pattorii packs were issued by imperial edict. Thoy are now known 
througliout tlie cini)irc as ku p'ai, ' 1)0U(; pal;' hut it does not follow that this class 
of games, po-sai, ko-wu, and the rest originated in the reign Hsiian-ho." 

As the fore,i;'oing' shows that the historical evidence is inconclusive 
as to the actual invention of dominoes, and as the Chinese accounts of 
the invention of other games are not particularly trustworthy, and 
especially as the history of all games seems to be one of gradual evo- 
lution, rather than direct invention, the following pages are devoted 




Fig. 24. 

PASE (DICE). SICT OF THEEE FOR CHAUSAH. lACKNOW, INDIA. 

(From specimens in .Museum of University of Pennsylvania.) 

to an examination into the origin of the game from internal evidences 
rather than an historical point of view. 



DOMINOES A FORM OF DICE. 

It is readily apparent that the 21 individual domino pieces represent 
the possible throws with 2 dice, and that the domino pieces may be 
regarded as conjoined dice. Of this the Korean dommocs furnish the 
best material evidence. Consonant with many other Korean objects, 
they are typical of an earlier age of Chinese culture than that now 
existing in China. 

Their material, color of spots, and the manner in which the *'one" 
S])ots are incised and made larger than the other spots, comj^lete their 
resemblance to 2 conjoined dice. It we accept this theory the bone- 
faced bamboo dominoes may be regarded as directly related to the pre- 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



533 




Fig. 25. 

PASE (DICE), SET OF THREE FOR CHAU- 
SAK, LUCKXOW, INDIA. 

(From specimens in Museum of University of 
Pennsylvania. ) 



ceding, the wooden backs being substituted as a matter of economy. 
Dominoes made entirely of wood would naturally follow, and the long 
dominoes used in the south of China might be regarded as a later type. 
Even they bear a suggestion of their origin in the spots with which 
their ends and tops are decorated. 

The names of the dominoes are the same as those of the corre- 
sponding throws with the 2 dice, and the pieces are divided, like the 
dice-throws, into the series of man and 
mo, in which they rank in the same order 
as the dice. The correspondence extends 
to the game as well, the most character- 
istic domino game, td fin lean, closely 
resembling the most characteristic dice 
game, clidli fin lain. Indeed, if dominoes 
were invented for the purpose of a game, 
they doubtless had their origin in the 
game with 2 dice. This game with 2 
dice, sheung lulij which, according to one 
Chinese authority, is said to have come 
from India, finds a parallel in an Indian dice game. 

Several kinds of dice are employed in games in India. One (fig. 24) 
called pase (plural of pasa) are used in the game called chausar, and 
consist of rectangular bone or ivory prisms, marked on 4 sides with 1, 
2, 5, and G spots. These dice are sometimes made shorter and pointed 
at the ends (fig. 25). Their origin I assign to the staves referred to on 
page 507. Another kind of Indian dice, called by the Arabic name of 

Jc'-ab, or Jcabat, from '/cab, 
'^ ankle," '^ ankle bone," are 
used in the game of k^aba- 
taiUy 2 dice being thrown. 
Either . natural astragali, 
consisting of the knuckle 
bones of a goat, or dice 
marked on 4 sides with 
'Hhree," '^bur," "one," and 
'^ six " spots, or cubical dice 
regularly marked on the 6 
sides (fig. 27) are employed. 
The '^four" spots on these 
dice are usually marked in red, and often both the "three" and 
^'four" are marked in this color.* Thus cubical dice appear to be 

"" This account of k'ah was cominnuicated to the ^vrite^ by the Hon. Syad Moham- 
med Hadi, of Sultanpur, India. Two sets of ivory dice, received by the writer from 
Lucknow, are cubical, and marked on their 6 sides with from 1 to 6 spots, in the same 
manner as our common dice. The '* fours" ah^ne are in red. 




Fig. 26. 
SET OF LONG DICE: CELEBES. 



534 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 




Fig. 27. 

KABATAIN— PAIR OF IVORY 
DICE: LUCKNOW, INDIA. 

(From specimens in Museum of 
Univerfity of Pennsylvania.) 



directly conuected with the knuckle boues. The Arabic name for the 
knuckle bone and the die is the same, k'abj and, like the knuckle 
bones, which are commonly thrown in pairs, natural pairs from the 
right and left leg being used, cubical dice are also thrown in pairs. 
Carrying out the resemblance, cubical dice in India are sold in pairs, 

and by varying the arrangement of the "threes" 
and "fours"* are actually made in pairs, rights 
and lefts, like the knuckle bones. If this is the 
true history of the descent of the cubical dotted 
die, its evolution must have occurred at a very 
early time, as the regularly marked stone die 
from the Greek colony of Naucratis, Egypt 
(fig. 28), assigned by tlie discoverer, Mr. Flinders 
Petrie, to 600* B. C, bears witness. 

Now, the 4 sides of the knuckle bone (talus) (fig. 30), which were 
designated among the Romans as supinum, pronum, planwiiy and tor- 
tuosum, and correspond with the numbers "three," "four," "one," and 
" six," receive in the Mohammedan East the names of ranks and con- 
ditions of men. The Persians, according to Dr. Hyde, t name them, 
respectively, ^'duzd,^^ "slave," '^dihban^^^ "peas- 
ant," ^'■vezir^^^ "viceroy," and shah, or padi-shah, 
" king." Similar names are given by the same 
author as applied to them by the Arabs, Turks, 
and Armenians. From this it appears that the 
names and rank given to the significant throws, 
"three," "four," "one," and "six," with knuckle 
bones and dice in Western Asia find their coun- 
terparts in the names and rank of the same 
throws in China, the names of the classes of 
human society found among the Arabs being 
replaced in China with the terms for the cosmic 
powers: "Heaven" ("six"), "Earth" ("one"), 
and "Man" ("four"), and the "Harmony" 

("three-one"), that unites them. It will also be observed that the 
use of 2 dice, which appears to follow tbat of the natural pair of 
knuckle bones, and is displayed in the Indian k'abatain, and the 
ancient and widely diffused game of backgammon, is paralleled by 
the use of 2 dice in. China, where sheung luTc (Japanese, sugoroku) 




Fig. 28. 

STONE DIE: NAUCBATIS, 
EGYPT. 

From specimen in Museum of Univer- 
sity of Pennsylvania. 



* If a Chinese die be thrued ace up and revolved toward the person holding it so 
that the 'Hwo," "five," and "six" are disclosed in succession, it will be found that 
the ''three" is usually to the left and the "four" to the right, while the opposite is 
more usually the case on European dice. In the Indian dice here referred to, this 
arrangement is alternated, one having the ''three" on the right and the other on 
the left. 

t De Ludis Orieiitalibus, \^. 147. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 



535 



is a common name for dice play. It has been observed that the 
"threes" and "fours" are marked in red on Indian dice, while in 
Chiua tlie "ones" and "fours" are so marked. The Wale Jean san 




Fig. 29. 

A>X1ENT ROMAN DICE OF IVORY. 
(From specimens in Museum of Lniversity of Pennsylvania. } 



sai relates that in tlie game of SugoroJcu the throws receive the fol- 
lowing names : 



Ohio ichi, ''double one.'' 

Chio ni, ''double two.'' 

Shin 8(171, " vermiliou three." 



Skill ski, ''vermilion four.'" 
Chio go, " double five." 
Cliio roku. " double six." 



From this it would appear that the dice anciently used in Japan and 
China had the "three" and "four" marked in red* like the Indian 






Fig. 30. 

THE FOrR SIDES OF A KNUCKLE BONK. 
After Hyde. 



k^abat, instead of the " one" and "four," as is the present custom — an 
additional argument m favor of the Indian origin of the Chinese dice. 
Two questions remain to be answered: 



*A pair of miniature Japanese ivory dice, jiresented to the writer by Prof. Henry 
H. Giglioli, of Florence, Italy, have the " threes" and "fours" marked in red. 



536 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1893. 



Where and for what i)nrpose were the dice- throws united in the 
domino form, and wliy was tlie number of the domino i)ieces increased 
from 21 to 32? Dominoes are unknown in Iiulia as a native game, but 
as it seemed i)0ssible that they might have had their origin there for 
use in fortune telling, the Avriter made a careful examination of the prin- 
cipal East Indian systems of fortune telling with dice, but the results 

did not throw any light upon the origin of 
dominoes. * The Thibetan astrologers, ac- 
cording to Schlagintweit, f use dice which 
are either cubes like European ones, or 
rectangular i)arallelopipedons, sometimes 
comparatively very long; the latter, in con- 
sequence of their form, having two sides 
blank. This description agrees with the 
preceding Indian dice used in fortune tell- 
ing, which I regard as derived from the game with staves, but the 
faces of a die (fig. 32), which Schlagintweit figures as used by the 
Thibetans for astrological purposes, suggests a domino in the duplica- 
tion of its spots.l 

The astrological associations of the domino game have not thrown 





Fig. 31. 

ANCIENT GLASS ASTRAGALI: SYRIA. 

(From specimens in Mtiseiini of University of 
Pennsylvania. ) 








• 




o 




• 








o o o o 
• • • • 


o 
o 

o 


• 
• 
• 


o 


o • 

• 
• 


o 


• 

o • 

o 

o 


• 


o o • • 
o o • • 


o o • • 

o • 
o o • • 



Fig. 32. 

FACES OF TIBETAN DIE USED FOR ASTROLOGICAL PURPOSES. 
From Schlagintweit. 



light as yet upon the question of its origin. They have been referred 
to in connection with the method of telling fortunes, and it has been 
observed that the disks accompanying the bamboo dominoes from 
Fuhchau bear the names of the cyclical animals. It will also be 
noticed that the terms ihi and ngdng, ^'weak" and '^strong," applied to 
the ])airs in the game of Jx'ap Pdi shapj p. 513, are the same as those used 
to designate the broken and undivided lines in the Yilc King, and that 

* Report of the Proceedings of the Xuinismatic and Aiiti(iuarian Society of Phila- 
delphia, 1890-01, p. 65. 

t Buddhism in Thibet, London, 1863, p. 315. 

tCol. W. W. Kockhill informs mo tiiat he never saw dice used in Thibet except for 
fortune telling. According to Col. Kockhill, the 'J'hibetan name for dice is sho, and 
a person who throws dice, mo Jya6 /icu. He tells mo that he always saw four dice 
used in Thibet and North Cliina, These dice have no " six."' There is a picture of 
the god Pal-dan-hlamo holding a bag of dominoes or dice in the superb Thibetan col- 
lection deposited by him in the U. 8. National Museum. 



CHINESE GAMES WITH DICE AND DOMINOES. 537 



V^ 




the diagram ( fig. 33)* which is given by Legge t as the accepted form 
of the Lolc Shi'i, or '' Lo writing,"' which is referred to in the YiJc King 
as one of the sources of in- 
spiration for its broken and 
undivided lines, { is com- 
posed of light and dark cir- 
cles similar to the domino 
dots. 

1 may suggest, in conclu- ^ ^ OOOOOOOOO 
sion, that dominoes may ^ # 

have been first used as coun- 
ters or tallies in a dice game O 
or m a method of fortune O O O 
telling with dice. They ex- O 
isted in their present form in Q O O O O 
China in theyear 1120 A. D., O 
according to the Chinese rec- O O O 
ords,with similar astrological O 
associations as at the pres- 

ent day. They are clearly # iO # 

descended from dice, and # # # # 

particularly from that game # O • • 

with two dice which appears ~ # 

to have been introduced into ^' 

. . LOK SHU, OR "LO WRITING." 

China Irom western Asia. 

* This diagram coincides with the most renowned of the arithmetical squares 
whicli are used as charms both by Hindus and Mohaniuiedansin India. It is usually 
written as below, an inversion of tlie Chinese arrangement. 

6 18 

7 5 3 
2 9 4 

This square appears in its numerical form on the Thibetan charts, reproduced by 
Schlagintweit, wiiere it is arranged in the Chinese order. 

It is believed in India, said one of my Mohammedan informants, that to write this 
charm will bring good look and money by honest means. The object for which it is 
used is always written beneath it. He told me that his grandfather wrote it every 
day after prayers and would place beneath it the words rizk, "bread," or cliardj, 
'' expenses." Such numbered diagrams are cut in squares, each containing a number. 
These are made into pills with wlieaten bread and thrown into a pond (►r river to be 
eiiten by fish. 

Another Indian, a Hindu, says that this magic square is called in Hindustani 
Fundra no yuvtra, or the»''15 yuntra." 

It is writj:en both with numerals and with dots. In the latter case the sot of dots 
from 1 to 9 frequently are made each of a diflerent color and certain names are 
given to them. 

It is not improbable that this diagram was borrowed by the Chinese from India, 
and that, too, at a much later i)eriod than is usnally assigned to it by the Chinese. 
The writer found a co])y of it — in Arabic numerals, among the written charms in a 
soldier's kit captured in Tonquin — in the Municipal Museum of the city of Havre. 

The spots, like those on the dice, are doubtless survivals of a primitive system of 
notation, like that which existe<l in Mexico at tlie time of the Conquest. 

t Legge. Kev. Dr. .Tames, The Ye King, Oxford. V6^2. Introduction, p. 18. 

Xlhid., Appendix III, Sec. i, par. 73. 



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